Across the Stars: The Phantom Menace
by SpeechBubbleMe
Summary: AU slow-burn Obi-Wan x OC - The continuation of Rhys Talik's journey as a Jedi Knight. Sequel to my first fanfiction, Across the Stars. Rhys Talik Naberrie knew she was meant to be a Jedi, and now sent to aid her sister Padme Amidala on Naboo, she will endure the trials of attachment, the Dark Side, and having a young padawan at her side.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 **Hello, SpeechBubbleMe here! Welcome to my second story, the next installment of my Across the Stars fanfiction! If you are, in fact, looking for my original Across the Stars story… "This is not the story you're looking for… move along…" Look on my main page! Thank you to all of you that followed and reviewed Across the Stars – I would absolutely love it if you continued to do so for this story!**

 **That being said, here is the first chapter and disclaimer: I bow in supplication to the great and powerful Disney… I don't own Star Wars!**

* * *

Turmoil has engulfed the Galactic Republic. The taxation of trade routes to outlying star systems is in dispute.

Hoping to resolve the matter with a blockade of deadly battleships, the greedy Trade Federation has stopped all shipping to the small planet of Naboo.

While the congress of the Republic endlessly debates this alarming chain of events, the Supreme Chancellor has secretly dispatched two Jedi Knights, the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy, to settle the conflict….

* * *

Obi-Wan stood next to his Master, trying to match the cool front that the older Jedi exuded. Their diplomatic cruiser was coming up on the Trade Federation's blockade over the beautiful planet of Naboo. Qui-Gon's voice broke the silence from where he stood in the rear of the cockpit.

"Captain." The captain turned in her seat to address the Jedi.

"Yes, sir?"

"Tell them we wish to board at once."

"Yes, sir," the captain turned to her view screen where a Neimoidian was waiting for her reply, "With all due respect for the Trade Federation, the Ambassadors for the Supreme Chancellor wish to board immediately."

Obi-Wan tuned out the Neimoidian's oily words as his gaze wandered to the planet below. Somewhere Rhys Talik was down there – probably injured or worse. She could have over-exerted herself, bringing on a debilitating seizure that would render her defenseless. Granted, Tamai Olo was far from incompetent, but the boy was only twelve, and it was only his third mission-

He was jolted from his thoughts by the cruiser docking in the enormous main bay of the Federation battleship. Obi-Wan followed his Master down the ramp, slightly behind him in his usual place as a padawan learner. They were met by a silver-plated protocol droid.

"I'm TC-14 at your service," the droid intoned, "This way, please." The droid led them through the ship, finally stopping at a formal conference room with a large observation window.

"I hope you honored sirs will be most comfortable here. My master will be with you shortly," the droid continued as the two Jedi entered the conference room. As soon as the droid left, they lowered their hoods.

"I have a bad feeling about this."

Qui-Gon looked over at his apprentice, "I don't sense anything."

"It's not about the mission, Master, it's something… elsewhere… elusive."

"Don't center on your anxieties, Obi-Wan. Keep your concentration here and now where it belongs," the older Jedi chided his padawan.

"Master Yoda said I should be mindful of the future-" the padawan started, but was interrupted by his Master.

"But not at the expense of the moment. Be mindful of the Living Force, my young padawan," Qui-Gon said as he walked towards the large windows.

"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan deferred, following the older Jedi, "How do you think the Trade Viceroy will deal with the Chancellor's demands?"

"These Federation types are cowards. The negotiations will be short.

Obi-Wan nodded as he agreed with his Master. He stayed a little longer to gaze at the planet below when Qui-Gon made his way to one of the many seats. _Rhys is down there…_ he thought worriedly, _She could be injured, or captured… or worse_. Obi-Wan shook off increasingly worrying thoughts as he remembered his friend's particular talent for attracting trouble to her person like moths to a flame. On Tam's fist mission with his Master, the two of them had found themselves in the middle of a series of political assassinations during what was meant to be a simple renewal of a planetary treaty.

He grimly remembered his past conversations with her about her affinity for finding trouble, to which she had replied teasingly, "Why should I worry when I have you to do it for me?" Then, more solemnly, "A little trouble won't kill me…" as if she knew exactly what would happen. Breaking free from his thoughts, Obi-Wan joined his Master sitting at the conference table, tapping his fingers on the cool metal impatiently.

"Is it in their nature to make us wait this long?" he asked as the silver protocol droid entered carrying a tray of drinks.

"No, I sense an unusual amount of fear for something as trivial as this trade dispute," Qui-Gon replied, accepting a drink. They waited in silence, listening to the droid attempt to reassure them that its Masters would be in shortly to meet with them.

All of a sudden, both Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon leapt to their feet, lightsabers ablaze as they felt the death of their pilot and copilot aboard the ship. The droid was startled, mumbling several nervous apologies. Qui-Gon's gaze travelled the room, finally landing on the vents near the floor.

"Dioxis," he warned, gesturing to the green-ish gas coming out of the vents. Obi-Wan sucked in a deep breath and remained motionless to conserve his air. Both Jedi sat like statues while the protocol droid bumbled around blindly until the door opened, revealing a squad of battle droids. The disoriented droid stumbled out of the room, apologizing as the gas spilled out.

"Check it out Corporal, we'll cover you."

"Roger, roger."

In tandem, the two Jedi ignited their lightsabers and fell on the surprised battle droids, cutting them down in a matter of minutes. Obi-Wan followed his Master in the direction of the main bridge, blue blade flashing dangerously. He quickly dispatched the droids guarding the doors while his Master attempted to cut through the heavy blast doors.

"Master, destroyers!" Obi-Wan warned as he sensed their presence. When the droidekas finally appeared, they were surrounded by a thick shield, "They have shield generators!"

The Jedi furiously deflected the blaster bolts, edging away from the smoking door to the bridge. "It's a stand-off," Qui-Gon said, parrying a blaster bolt in the direction of the destroyers, "Let's go!"

With a burst of speed, the pair sprinted down the corridor, dodging shots from the droidekas behind them. Once they were out of range, they slipped inside one of the massive ventilation shafts, disappearing into the depths of the ship.

Qui-Gon finally stopped at a high opening, dropping into the giant hangar bay. Obi-Wan followed after him, silently leaping to crouch at his Master's side behind a large mound of crated equipment.

"Battle droids," Qui-Gon observed as he peered between crates.

"It's an invasion army," Obi-Wan's voice was tinged with awe.

"It's an odd play for the Trade Federation. We've got to warn the Naboo and contact Chancellor Valorum. Let's split up," Qui-Gon suggested wisely, "Stow aboard separate ships and meet down on the planet. We'll have a better chance of locating Master Talik and her padawan as well."

Obi-Wan nodded in agreement, then stopped with a wry grin on his face, "You were right about one thing, Master – the negotiations were short."

* * *

Rhys awoke to a blaring warning from the Force. She snapped to full attention from where she had been sleeping in the copilot's chair, dashing out of the cockpit and into the main hold where Tam had been sleeping on the circular couch. He met her at the door, anxious eyes wide.

"I felt it too," she reassured him. The boy seemed to relax some at his Master's words, but his gaze still held much of its original fright. "We're not safe here anymore."

Tam nodded in agreement, "What are we going to do now?"

"I'm not sure…" Rhys confessed, "But I know that our situation has changed. I feel like we need to head back in the direction of Theed."

"Breakfast first?" the padawan asked hopefully. Rhys allowed a smile to grace her features as she was reminded of the boy's nearly insatiable appetite. It brought back pleasant memories of her friends clustered around their usual table, giving up a small portion for Reeft.

"Of course."

After a light breakfast – to Tam's dismay, Ivrek had not packed much food onto the Falcon beforehand – the Jedi cautiously exited their ship. Tam's rudimentary screen of branches had done its job well to conceal the ship, as there were no other fighters patrolling the skies searching for their remains. As Rhys gazed at the thick forest around her, she couldn't help but smirk grimly – the games of hide-and-seek she had once played as a child in these very trees were about to take upon a whole different meaning.

"Which way should we go?" Tam asked, gazing suspiciously at the mass of trees before them. Rhys closed her eyes, deep in thought as she reached out through the Force. After a few moments, she could feel herself being pulled in a certain direction. She opened her eyes with a smile.

"Wherever the Force takes us."

* * *

Obi-Wan again resisted the urge to roll his eyes as the strange Jar-Jar creature kept talking. He was reminded distinctly of the time when Qui-Gon, out of pity, had rescued a young amphibious creature on a mission, bringing it back to the Temple despite his apprentice's many protests. Much like his current situation, Obi-Wan was forced to listen to the thing make noise unceasingly, even rebuked. The ability to speak definitely did not make the Gungan intelligent.

Currently, the two Jedi were following Jar-Jar to some hidden city or other that he claimed to originate from. It had taken a bit of convincing – pointed remarks of impending doom seemed to work wonders – but he had agreed to guide them there through the seemingly-endless swamps and trees.

"Master, do you think we'll be able to find Master Talik?" he asked in an undertone so the Gungan wouldn't overhear. Qui-Gon looked a little pained at his padawan's question.

"I hope so," he confessed with a sigh, "If the Force wills it." Obi-Wan nodded solemnly.

The odd trio continued walking, entering a small clearing, until Obi-Wan felt a warning ripple through the Force shortly before several battle droids on mounted speeders began shooting at them once again. Qui-Gon hurriedly pulled out his lightsaber (Obi-Wan's had been damaged by the water) and began deflecting their shots. Jar-Jar yelled in panic and flopped ungracefully on the ground.

Qui-Gon managed to hold his own for a little while, but Obi-Wan could tell that he was beginning to tire. Suddenly, the droids swung around, their focus shifted by another threat. The padawan watched as one of the shots directed across the clearing was deflected by a pair of violet lightsabers, shooting back at the droid that fired it and destroying it. A second pair of lightsabers joined the first, blocking more bolts with flashing emerald blades. In a matter of seconds all that was left of the droids were piles of scrap tumbling down into a nearby ravine.

Obi-Wan grinned broadly as he recognized the wielders of the lightsabers – it seemed that Rhys Talik had found them.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"I assume correctly in that the Council sent you to rescue me?" Rhys called out as soon as she was within earshot of the other pair of Jedi. Obi-Wan met her ahead of his Master, looking very relieved.

"Well, you do occasionally need to be rescued," he joked, hugging his friend.

"Well then, I suppose I should thank you for your daring rescue, Kenobi," she said dramatically. Her apprentice rolled his eyes.

"Oh yes, there's nothing quite like a good rescue after being shot out of the sky," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. Rhys rounded on her padawan with a warning look. Tam quickly occupied himself with staring curiously at the Gungan before him. Jar-Jar noticed, waving one of his large hands in Tam's direction.

Qui-Gon stepped forward to greet the young Jedi Knight, "I'm glad to see that you both aren't hurt." He then proceeded to tell her about their short negotiations aboard the Trade Federation's starship and their consequent arrival on Naboo. If Rhys was surprised that the Trade Federation had brought an army she hid it very well.

"We have to warn the Queen," she said firmly once Qui-Gon had finished.

"Jar-Jar was showing us to Otoh Gunga, the Gungan city he's from," the older Master replied, gesturing to the Gungan beside him, "We are hoping to secure a transport there." Rhys seemed to contemplate the plan for a little while, then nodded her head.

"Very well. You two go to the Gungans – Tam and I will find another way into the city," she finally answered, "We'll use the tunnels on the waterfall side of the city to try and get into Theed Palace. If we're going to warn the Chancellor, we'll need a transport. Tam and I will meet you in the main hangar of the palace."

Qui-Gon nodded his head in agreement, "May the Force be with you."

"And with you, Master Jinn," she replied, watching him and the Gungan start towards the cover of trees. Obi-Wan held back a little bit.

"Be safe, alright?" he said a little hesitantly. Rhys felt her cheeks grow a little warm as he loped off to follow his Master. She shook off her confusing feelings as she turned in the direction of Theed. Tam felt his Master's brief emotion through their bond before she buried it beneath her shields.

The pair walked in silence through the thick foliage until Rhys stopped her padawan with a raise of her hand. She glanced at her datapad, realizing that they had made it to the outer wall of Theed. Sensing danger, she moved to the cover of the dense brush, beckoning for Tam to follow. He ducked out of sight just before a patrol of battle droids came through. As soon as they were out of range, Rhys looked around.

"The entrance is through that grate," she whispered, pointing to the barely visible bars set into the stone.

"Now I know why you didn't have Obi-Wan and Master Jinn come with us," Tam whispered back, "There was no way that they would fit in there." Rhys tried not to laugh at her padawan's correct observation – Obi-Wan's lanky frame would have a hard time crawling through the narrow tunnels slick with water and moss.

Checking that the droids were at a safe distance, Rhys bolted across to the grate, slicing through the metal with a stroke of her lightsaber. "Tam!" she hissed to where her apprentice was still hidden. He scrambled swiftly to her side.

"Stay close to me, understand?" the boy nodded, wide-eyed. She placed a hand on his shoulder to reassure him, "Watch your footing."

With that, she bent into the tunnel, pulling a small light from her belt. Tam peered uncertainly into the depths of the tunnel, but followed his Master with a heavy sigh. It was damp, cold, and very slippery, causing the two Jedi's to lose their footing as they traversed a particularly steep incline.

"How did you know this was here, anyway?" Tam huffed as he pulled himself over the lip of the pipe.

"I was fond of exploring," Rhys replied simply, "There are larger, less precarious tunnels, but this is the only one that I know of that leads us straight into the palace. All others lead to various places in Theed."

"Yes, but this one is also the wettest," he remarked, shaking the water from his soaking wet strands of dark hair.

He could almost hear the laugh in her voice when she replied, "The life of a Jedi isn't glamourous, Tam, despite what you see on the holovids. You would do well to remember that."

"Yes, Master."

* * *

Obi-Wan watched intently at the procession below him. The Queen, her handmaidens, the Governor, and her security forces were being shepherded by several battle droids, presumably to camps with the rest of the Naboo. The Queen's face was unreadable underneath a thick mask of white face paint, but her manner suggested silent defiance.

On a mental signal from his Master, the two Jedi dropped in the midst of the droids, landing gracefully with their lightsabers ignited. Jar-Jar, ever clumsy, dangled from the walkway where he was caught by his pant leg. Four battle droids were cut down immediately by their flashing green and blue blades. More droids moved forward only to be easily disassembled until there was the droid sergeant left. It tried to run away, but was pulled back to Qui-Gon by the Force until he finally dispatched it.

"Yousa guys bombad!" Jar-Jar exclaimed, very much amazed. The Queen and her retinue follow the Jedi to cover in between two buildings.

"Your Highness, we are the Ambassadors for the Supreme Chancellor," Qui-Gon said once they were all together.

Sio Bibble, the Governor of Theed, said reprovingly, "Your negotiations seem to have failed, Ambassador."

"The negotiations never took place," the Jedi replied shortly, "Your Highness, we must make contact with the Republic." Captain Panaka, head of the Queen's security forces, stepped forward.

"They've knocked out all our communications." Obi-Wan groaned mentally – this mission was getting better and better.

"Do you have transports?"

"In the main hangar," Panaka replied, directing with a hand, "This way."

As they hurried over to the hangar, Obi-Wan found himself near one of the handmaidens by the Queen. He nearly did a double take when he glimpsed her face underneath the flame-colored hood – her face was eerily similar to that of Rhys Talik's.

"The two Jedi that were here before," she hissed under her breath as they reentered the palace, "Are they all right? We watched as they were shot down."

"They're fine," he reassured her. The handmaiden let out a soft sigh of relief, tension releasing from her body, "Trust me, it would take a lot more than that to kill Master Talik. She's definitely more persistent than I ever give her credit for." The handmaiden laughed softly.

"Yes, she did seem that way," she replied, mirth tinging her voice despite of the grave situation.

When the group reached the hangar, Panaka cracked open a side door and peered inside. "There's too many of them," he said, turning to the Jedi.

"That won't be a problem," Qui-Gon replied.

I can sense Master Talik and Tam on the far side of the hangar. They seem to be waiting for our signal, Obi-Wan reported mentally to his Master. Qui-Gon gave a quick nod of approval.

Qui-Gon turned to Queen Amidala, "Your Highness, under the circumstances, I suggest you come to Coruscant with us."

"Thank you, Ambassador, but my place is here with my people," she replied firmly.

"They will kill you if you stay," the older Jedi reminded her.

"They wouldn't dare!" Bibble intersected.

Panaka cut in, "They need her to sign a treaty to make this invasion of theirs legal, they can't afford to kill her."

Seeing as his attempt to explain the danger wasn't getting through, Qui-Gon decided to appeal directly to Queen Amidala herself, "The situation here is not what it seems. There is something else behind all this, Your Highness. There is no logic in the Federation's move here. My feelings tell me that they will destroy you."

"Please, Your Highness, reconsider," Bibble pled, "Our only hope is for the Senate to side with us… Senator Palpatine will need your help."

"Getting past their blockade is impossible, Your Highness," Panaka cut in, "Any attempt to escape will be dangerous."

"Your Highness, I will stay here and do what I can," Bibble said resignedly, "They will have to retain the Council of Governors in order to maintain control, but you must leave…" The Queen seemed to heavily consider their words, finally turning to her handmaidens.

"Either choice presents great danger… to us all…"

"We are brave, Your Highness," the handmaiden in front replied, seemingly speaking for all of them. The Queen nodded – this was apparently the answer she had been looking for.

"If you are to leave, Your Highness, it must be now," Qui-Gon gently reminded her.

"Then I will plead out case before the Senate," she decided firmly. Then, to the Governor, "Be careful, Governor." Bibble bowed respectfully, staying behind with two of the handmaidens while the rest of the group followed Qui-Gon purposefully into the hangar.

"We need to free those pilots," Panaka said, pointing to a group of prisoners seated on the floor with droids around them.

"I'll take care of that," Obi-Wan said confidently, breaking off from the group. He tried to focus on the task ahead while Qui-Gon attempted to reason with the battle droid in front of him.

"Uh… that doesn't compute…. Wait, uh…. You're under arrest!" The droid guard draws his weapon, but before any of the droids could fire they were cut down. Other guards form the far side of the hangar attempt to come to their aid, but are stopped by two pairs of lightsabers springing from behind a supply pile. Obi-Wan grinned as he saw purple and green blades coming towards the sleek chrome spacecraft. Everyone rushed to the ship as alarms blared through the hangar.

Rhys found herself at the side of the Queen and her three remaining handmaidens as they ran to the ship amidst blaster fire. She was mildly surprised when she discovered that the Queen was not, in fact, her sister. Padmé, the true Queen, was hidden in the guise of one of the orange-robed handmaidens.

"Tam, get on board!" she ordered as the last of the Queen's handmaidens reached the ship's ramp. Her padawan quickly hurried to obey, disappearing into the silver starship. More and more droids filled the hangar as she and Obi-Wan fought to hold them off. Rhys was so focused on the battle that she neglected to notice any damage to her person – several glancing blows that scorched her tunic, a small burn on her shoulder, and a hit that she failed to deflect on her abdomen. She was relieved when the ship began to take off, closing the ramp.

She made their way to the ship's cockpit where Qui-Gon, Panaka, and the pilot are trying to navigate through the rain of blaster fire. Obi-Wan reappeared after making sure that Jar-Jar didn't cause too much trouble. Rhys watched as the shield generator was hit and several astro droids were dispatched to try and get the power back. Moments later, they were able to get the power back and break through the blockade.

"There's not enough power to get us to Coruscant," the pilot reported, "The hyperdrive is leaking."

"We'll have to land somewhere to refuel and repair the ship," Qui-Gon mused, studying a star chart on the monitor.

"Here, Master. Tatooine…" Obi-Wan offered, pulling up the planet in question on the holoprojector, "It's small, out of the way, poor… the Trade Federation has no presence there."

"How can you be sure?" Panaka said, doubt lacing his words.

"It's controlled by the Hutts," Rhys said from where she leaned against the wall of the cockpit for support. The blaster wound she had sustained was more severe than she had initially thought.

"It's risky…" Obi-Wan responded, looking at his friend with concern, "But there's no alternative."

"You can't take Her Royal Highness there!" Panaka sounded on the verge of outrage at what the Jedi were suggesting, "The Hutts are gangsters! If they discover her-"

"It would be no different than if we landed on a system controlled by the Trade Federation," Rhys rebuked, eyes flashing, "Except the Hutts aren't looking for her, which gives us the advantage." Captain Panaka took a deep breath in frustration, but acquiesced. Once she had seen that the Captain would give them no trouble, Rhys staggered back to the main hold, followed closely by Obi-Wan. As she sank onto one of the benches, Obi-Wan crouched worriedly beside her.

"Let me see it," he urged gently, eyeing the hand that was covering her blaster wound. Rhys looked at him sharply for a moment then relented, too tired to argue. The padawan extracted some bacta patches from his belt wordlessly. Rhys hissed in pain when he pressed the patches onto the burnt skin.

"You're lucky," he remarked, pressing the last patch and covering it with a bandage, "It's just a surface wound. However, until the bacta kicks in, you'll still have quite a bit of pain but no scar."

Rhys grunted as she tried to sit herself up. "Good. Force knows I have enough of those."

"I'll go find Tam," Obi-Wan offered, standing up and heading towards the door.

"Thanks, Obi," she called after him, a smile cutting through the grimace of pain.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **Hello again! Sorry for the long time between updates this time around, some family problems have arisen that I've had to take care of. I'll try to be more regular this month, but I don't know if that'll actually happen. That being said, here's the docket!**

 **StormSkye:** **I know, it's been a long process, but thanks for sticking with me! Hope you like the new story!**

 **Darth Becky 726:** **I agree with you there that Obi-Wan should have gone with Qui-Gon, but for story purposes he'll have to stay on the ship . I'll try to put a bit more Obi/Rhys fluff in the future**

 **Ngrasser506:** **Double-teaming Grievous would be epic! Thanks for the idea and review!**

 **.2016:** **Glad you like it! In answer to your question, it is a slow-burn, but there will be a bit more feeling by the end of TPM.**

 **That's all! Thank you to all of the new followers and reviewers out there… much love is coming to you! If you have any ideas or comments on the plot, please be sure to tell me…. Some of the best ideas yet have come from my readers! Also, I am planning on posting some artwork on my profile page as soon as I get the time.**

 **Disclaimer: In the words of my sweet little bro…. "Mom, I thought we bought Star Wars… it's right there in the drawer!" Sadly, buddy, I don't own Star Wars.**

"Master!" Tam cried as he came barreling into the main hold not long after Obi-Wan had left to fetch him. His face fell considerably when he caught sight of her wound. Rhys rolled her eyes at her padawan.

"I'll be fine, Tam," she assured him, "Obi-Wan patched me up just fine." Tam gave a sigh of relief once he had seen for himself that her bandages were secure and proper.

"Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon are informing the Queen of our destination," the padawan reported. Rhys shook her head and suppressed a groan.

"No doubt Panaka will attempt to sway her. Fortunately, Her Highness trusts the Jedi – including Master Jinn and Obi-Wan. I'll have to have a word with her later…" Rhys mused thoughtfully, staring at the passageway that led to the Queen's makeshift chambers.

"Master…. Can I ask you something?" Tam hedged. His Master smirked.

"I believe you just did," she said wryly, to her padawan's exasperation.

"Do you think that this will end in war?" he asked huffily. Rhys ruffled his already messy hair.

"I hope not, Padawan… I hope not. Naboo couldn't possibly survive a full-out confrontation with the Trade Federation – they have a small military usually reserved for security, and-" Rhys was interrupted by an orange-robed handmaiden walking into the main room, followed by a very dirty astro droid. Rhys cocked an eyebrow as she recognized her sister's face as Padmé pulled back her hood.

"Does Panaka know that you're playing handmaiden, little sister?" Rhys asked, gazing curiously at the grubby droid. Padmé shook her head in reply.

"No, Sabé always uses my name whenever she is with the other handmaidens," she explained, "Panaka only knows when I tell him."

"Isn't that a little reckless? He is in charge of your security for a reason," Tam said without realizing who he was talking to. He mumbled an apology at his Master's disapproving glare. Padmé laughed softly, withdrawing a cloth from her pocket and beginning to clean the grime off of the top of the droid.

"Yes, it is," she conceded, "But then it gives me little moments of freedom and allows me to express my gratitude." She looked up from her task, "Without this droid, we would be dead – or worse, in the hands of the Trade Federation. The least I can do as Queen would be to give him a good cleaning!" Rhys silently agreed with her sister.

"Hidoe!" Padme jumped in surprise at the unexpected noise.

"Who are you?" she asked hesitantly.

"Mesa culled Ja Ja Binks," the Gungan replied proudly, walking over to where the three were seated. "Whosa are yousa?"

"I'm Padmé," the girl said simply, "You're a Gungan, aren't you?" Jar-Jar nodded enthusiastically, "How did you end up here with us?"

"My no know… mesa day starten pitty okeyday witda brisky morning munchen. Den boom…getten berry skeered, un grabbed dat Jedi, den seein more Jedi," Jar-Jar gestured to Rhys and her padawan, "And before mesa knowen it… pow! Mesa here," he shrugged helplessly, "… Getten berry, berry skeered!"

The droid gave a sympathetic beep as Padmé smiled kindly. Rhys produced another cloth from the folds of her tunic and began helping Padmé clean the droid, whose designation was R2-D2. Obi-Wan came in after several minutes, looking quite annoyed that his injured patient had moved from her seat.

"You're supposed to be resting, Rhys," he emphasized. Tam nodded at the older padawan behind his Master's back.

"I am resting," she retorted, "I just decided to help Padmé here clean up R2."

Obi-Wan huffed a sigh, exasperated, "Fine. Reopen your wounds for all I care." Padmé looked discreetly at her sister at the mention of injuries, but Rhys subtly waved her off.

"You of all people should know that I hate sitting in one place and doing nothing productive," she retorted.

"That doesn't stop you from meditating for hours, Master," Tam said under his breath – unlike his Master, Tam was not fond of the extensive meditation his Master required for every day. As soon as the words left his mouth, Tam knew that he had made a mistake – Rhys whirled on her apprentice, eyes glittering mischievously.

"Speaking of meditation, Tam…" she said evilly, "I believe that it is nearly time for your afternoon meditation."

"Master!" the twelve-year-old groaned above Padmé's giggles.

"Go on, Tam," she chided softly. The padawan made a face, but clomped heavily off to their shared quarters. Seeing the questioning look on Obi-Wan's face, she decided to explain, "Tam may be smart and level-headed, but his connection with the Force is wanting. He has difficulty connecting with the Force at times, and constant meditation will make it easier over the years." Obi-Wan nodded in understanding as he recognized the tactic his Master had often used to get him to concentrate through meditation.

"How did the Queen take the idea of landing on Tatooine?" she asked Obi-Wan.

"Panaka tried to convince her otherwise, but she seemed to realize that there was no other way," he replied, "It's clear that she didn't feel right about leaving Naboo with us in the first place."

Rhys could sense Padmé's silent agreement with Obi-Wan's words – she hadn't wanted to leave her people at the mercy of the Trade Federation, and certainly didn't like the idea of running away to beg before the Senate. However, Padmé's sense of duty won out, making her all the more determined to resolve this crisis to prevent more suffering. Rhys felt a bit of pride to be able to claim – secretly – that this girl was her sister.

"The Queen trusts me," Rhys said, "Probably more than you or Qui-Gon. Tam and I spent much time talking with her and her handmaidens before we tried to contact the Trade Federation. I'll speak with her later about Tatooine – perhaps she would be a bit more receptive of the idea coming from one she views as a friend."

"You're probably right," Obi-Wan admitted, giving Jar-Jar a sideways glance as the Gungan fiddled with a tool he found in one of the nearby drawers. Rhys flinched slightly when the clumsy creature dropped it on the floor, resulting in a large clang and many stammered apologies.

Grinning at Obi-Wan's obvious annoyance, Rhys stood up. "I'd better go see if Tam is actually meditating – he likes to procrastinate his own suffering as long as possible," she said, waving a farewell to Padmé and Jar-Jar, "I'll speak to the Queen as soon as I can."

With that, she left the main hold and walked purposefully to her assigned quarters. The four Jedi had been given two small cabins to share that were close to the quarters of the Queen and her handmaidens. As she drew closer, she felt her padawan sense her presence coming closer and quickly slipped into a proper meditation. Rhys opened the door to find him sitting on the floor, seeming like he had been meditating like a dutiful padawan.

"Oh, Master!" he cried innocently, turning around, "I was meditating so deeply, I didn't feel you coming!"

Rhys kept her visage unassuming, letting the boy think that he got away with procrastinating the thing he disliked most. Once he had turned around again, she snuck up behind him, making no noise.

"It's not wise to lie to your Master, Tamai," she whispered in a sing-song way. The padawan jumped as he felt her hot breath on the back of his neck.

"Sorry… Master," he cringed, turning around to look at her with apologetic eyes. Rhys didn't believe it for a second.

"Meditate. Now," she ordered, sitting on her berth and pulling out a datapad. Tam groaned, but obeyed his Master. She felt him relax into a light meditation, the Force swirling around him gently. Rhys enjoyed the rare silence as her padawan focused on his meditation.

After ten minutes, Tam opened his eyes again. "Do think it's right to keep Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon from knowing the truth about the Queen?" His Master gave a sigh and fixed him with a reproving stare.

"For now, yes. If they're smart, they'll figure it out on their own. Until Her Majesty wishes otherwise, it will stay between us and the Queen. Understood?" Her face was all seriousness as she waited for her padawan's answer.

"Yes, Master."

"Good, now begin again," Rhys said, standing up and walking to the door, "Remember, I can sense if you're not meditating. Think about that while I'm gone…" she warned as she slipped out of sight, heading to the Queen's chambers. Rhys suppressed a smirk as she felt Tam hurriedly attempt to meditate again.

When she knocked on the door, it was quickly answered by the handmaiden Rabé. Rhys was quickly ushered in by the orange-robed girl into the presence of Sabé, in the guise of the Queen. The decoy was attended by another handmaiden, a level-headed girl by the name of Eirtaé.

"Are you comfortable here, Your Highness?" Rhys asked, teasing the younger girl. Sabé broke into a smile, splitting the bright red Scar of Remembrance painted on her lips.

"Hardly," she replied imperiously, dark eyes twinkling with mirth, "I would be much better with a cup of fresh caf!" Rabé giggled at the mock-Queen's antics while Eirtaé merely rolled her eyes, always the proper one. Rhys couldn't help but notice how well the decoy mimicked her sister's voice and mannerisms – if she didn't know better, even she could have been convinced that this was the true Queen.

"Unfortunately, there will be no hot caf on this trip, Your Highness," Rhys smiled as Padmé spoke, squeezing through the door. The handmaidens seemed to relax visibly as soon as they caught sight of their friend.

"Let me guess…. You left poor, defenseless Jar-Jar at Obi-Wan's mercy?"

Padmé winced, "I think it might be the other way around – the poor boy seemed like he was dreading just the thought of being alone with Jar-Jar. When I left, he was looking for an escape route."

This hadn't been the first time one of Qui-Gon's adopted life-forms had taken a shine to his padawan. Rhys remembered fondly the mission to Ryloth when she and Garen had spent most of their spare time helping Obi-Wan hide from a smitten Twi'lek girl that Qui-Gon had rescued while on the mission. While Rhys did enjoy watching her friend blush uncomfortably, there were limits to his patience. Her reasoning was that if she didn't help Obi get rid of the lovesick girl, he would lose his patience and do something that he might regret.

The other handmaidens joined in commiserating for Obi-Wan's plight. Eventually, their lightheartedness turned to shared sorrow for their own circumstances and that of their planet. In a matter of moments, young Rabé was sobbing uncontrollably, prompting the other girls to circle around her to provide words of comfort. Sabé took off her elaborate headdress – to Eirtaé's dismay – and pulled the girl to her, stroking her hair.

Rhys looked on the scene with discomfort – this openness of raw feeling assaulted her senses through the Force. She felt herself begin to be overwhelmed, and remembered why she had come to the handmaidens in the first place. She beckoned to Padmé, drawing her to the far corner of the room.

"I know this isn't the best time, but it's what I came for," Rhys said under her breath, holding up a hand when her sister tried to interrupt her, "About Tatooine – if you're worried about the detour, know that this is the fastest way to get to Coruscant without the Trade Federation finding us. If you're worried for the safety of the others, just have them stay on the ship while we get a new hyperdrive."

"I'm not afraid!" Padmé interrupted indignantly. Rhys' face softened as she cupped her sister's chin in her hand.

"I know…" she whispered gently, "That's what worries me." She looked over her sister's head to the group of handmaidens, "Be strong for them… they need you more than you realize." Padmé nodded, wiping a stray tear from her cheek.

"May the Force be with you."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 **Hello, I'm not dead! Between family issues, loads of university homework, and a bout with double pneumonia, I haven't had a lot of time for writing. I certainly hope that all of my dedicated readers will forgive me... as a starting point towards mollification, I present three chapters today and hopefully (fingers crossed!) a fourth by the end of the week.**

 **Disclaimer: Sadly, so sadly, I do not own Star Wars. However, I do reserve the right to drive my nurses crazy by having a Star Wars marathon while in hospital!**

* * *

Rhys stood behind the pilot Ric Olie as Tatooine came into view. She tried to suppress her distaste at the sight of the dry, yellow planet – she had a deep dislike for desert planets, having been assigned an undercover mission on a planet such as this one. Endless sand, brutal heat, and an abundance of criminals and lowlifes were all they would find here.

The Naboo spacecraft gracefully landed on the outskirts of a rough-looking spaceport reported to be called Mos Espa. Large plumes of dust were lifted into the air as the ship touched down on the sandy world. The spaceport was seen in the distance, the occasional rise and fall of ships the only sign of activity. Rhys sighed and went to find a set of more inconspicuous clothes.

She would be going with Qui-Gon, R2-D2, and Jar-Jar into Mos Espa to try and locate a hyperdrive. Rhys highly doubted that they would find one that could be purchased – the only thing that they had were Republic credits, which were next to worthless out here in the Outer Rim. There were no other items of value they possessed, other than the Queen's possessions, but even then that wouldn't be enough.

Tam was in their quarters when she entered, still sulking about being left behind. He hadn't been pleased about leaving his Master, but was slightly mollified by the fact that Obi-Wan was staying as well. Obi-Wan was less than happy about Rhys going, on account of her healing wounds, but even he couldn't deny that she was indispensable as a speaker of Huttese. "Are you leaving already?" he asked, looking up from the datapad that occupied him.

"Yes," she answered, pulling a simple tunic out from her bag, "As soon as Qui-Gon and I assess the state of the hyperdrive. If we're lucky, we may just need a quick replacement relay – if not, we'll have to find a new one."

"How exactly are we going to pay for it, Master?" Rhys cursed her padawan's perceptiveness. She laid a hand on his shoulder.

"I don't know," she admitted, "I can only hope that Qui-Gon has some plan or other." Tam nodded solemnly.

"May the Force be with you, Master."

"And with you, Padawan."

* * *

Rhys toyed with her fingerless gloves as she waited for Qui-Gon to join her outside. The news Obi-Wan had reported wasn't good – they would have to purchase an entirely new hyperdrive. As dust and sand swirled around her boots, Rhys felt every inch the wearied transient she appeared to be.

Qui-Gon finally appeared, Artoo and Jar-Jar in tow. The Gungan was complaining loudly to the Jedi, pleading not to come along. Not for the first time that day, Rhys questioned Qui-Gon's decision to bring him along. True, he would hopefully make their story more believable as a group of travelers looking for repairs, provided he didn't do anything stupid. Knowing the clumsy Gungan, it was more than likely.

"Dis sun doen murder to mesa skin!" Jar-Jar exclaimed as they began their trek through the desert.

"Wait!" Rhys turned around as she heard Captain Panaka's voice. He was running from the ship, a smaller figure beside him. Rhys groaned inwardly as she realized who was approaching. The group stopped to allow them to catch up. Rhys eyed her sister's peasant garb and determined gaze, clearly set on coming along.

"Her Highness commands you to take her handmaiden with you," Panaka continued, "She wishes for her to observe the local-"

Qui-Gon interrupted him in exasperation, "No more commands from Her Highness today, Captain. This spaceport is not going to be pleasant."

"The Queen wishes it," Panaka insisted, "She's curious about the planet."

"I've been trained in defense," Padmé inserted, "I can take care of myself."

"Don't make me go back and tell her you refuse," the Captain said, clearly not pleased with the idea either.

Qui-Gon looked over at Rhys in an attempt to get some sort of support, but her concentration was fixed on the girl in front of her. He finally caved, and said sternly, "I don't have time to argue, but this is not a good idea."

"Stay close to me," Rhys ordered as Qui-Gon began walking briskly. She hung back next to Padmé, out of Qui-Gon's earshot. "When I said for the others to just stay on the ship, I meant you as well," she hissed.

"Sabé thought it was a good idea too!" Padmé said defensively, crossing her arms, "The others are sick of being in the ship, but I'm the only one who can do anything about it!" Rhys rolled her eyes at her sister's stubbornness and kept walking. As she walked, Rhys made sure that her lightsabers were safely stowed in her tunic, away from sight.

When they finally reached Mos Espa, Qui-Gon headed straight for a plaza of junk and part dealers. They decided to start with one of the smaller dealers, on the chance that their products would be cheaper and hopefully less difficult to procure. The little junk shop they chose had a huge pile of broken spaceships stacked up behind it, clearly the source of scavenged parts. As soon as they entered, they were greeted by a pudgy blue Toydarian.

" _Hi chuba da naga?_ " he greeted in Huttese. Rhys translated the words directly into Qui-Gon's mind. The older Jedi turned on a projected image of their ship on a small device.

"I need parts for a J-type 327 Nubian," he stated.

"Ah yes, ah yes. Nubian… we have lots of that. What kind of junk?" the Toydarian said in heavily accented Basic, then yelling in Huttese behind him, " _Peedenkel! Naba dee unko!_ " Rhys watched as a dirty little boy dressed in rags came running in from the junkyard. The boy made an excuse in Huttese as to what he was doing, receiving a harsh rebuke in reply and an order to watch the store.

"So… let me take-a thee out back," the shopkeeper oiled, leading Qui-Gon from the room, Artoo in tow, "You'll find what you need." Qui-Gon nodded and followed, taking a part from Jar-Jar sternly.

"Don't touch anything."

Jar-Jar made a rude face to Qui-Gon's back, sticking out his long tongue and causing Padmé to giggle a bit. The boy sat on the counter, cleaning a part, but all the while staring in awe at the young girl. Rhys hung back a bit, content to take in the rest of the shop. She could feel Padmé's embarrassment at the boy's stare, but she musters an amused smile. Finally, he gets the courage to speak.

"Are you an angel?" he asks, making Padmé do a double take.

"What?"

"An angel. I've heard the deep space pilots talk about them. They live on the moons of Iego, I think…" the boy explained. Rhys smiled as the boy continued to talk about the angels, and how Padmé was one and just didn't know it. He explained how he and his mother had been sold to Watto as a bet. Padmé seemed to be shocked by the idea of slavery still existing in the galaxy.

The boy eyed her defiantly, "I'm a person and my name is Anakin!" Rhys was surprised at the sudden flare of anger coming from the boy.

"I'm sorry," Padmé said in an attempt to pacify him, "I don't fully understand." She looked around the junk shop, "This is a strange world to me." Anakin studied her intently until his gaze was broken by a loud clutter produced by Jar-Jar dropping a small pit droid. The Gungan tried to stop it, but only knocked more things over.

"Hey!" Anakin raised his voice to get his attention, "Hit the nose!" Rhys took the squirming droid from Jar-Jar's flailing hands and bopped it on the head with the heel of her hand. It instantly went dormant, folding in on itself to rest on the floor. Both Anakin and Padmé laughed as Rhys returned the droid to its original place, along with a disapproving eyebrow in Jar-Jar's direction. The two continued to talk until Qui-Gon emerged from the junkyard, looking very annoyed.

"We're leaving. Now," he said shortly, stomping out of the store. Anakin and Padmé bid each other a hasty farewell as she followed the rest of the group out of the shop. Qui-Gon led them to a quiet spot in between two buildings, away from the busy street. The older Jedi hastily pulled out his communicator and commed his padawan on the ship. Qui-Gon's face fell as Obi-Wan confirmed what she already knew: they were stuck here with nothing of value to trade for the parts they needed.

"All right," the older Jedi acquiesced, "Another solution will present itself. I'll check back."

"If it'll help, I'm quite good at sabacc… there's bound to be a large gambling ring somewhere on this planet," Rhys called from the shadows. Qui-Gon's mouth twisted into a smile.

"Only if we must, Rhys," he replied, moving out of the alleyway to Jar-Jar's protestations. They walked along the buy street in front of an outdoor café, skirting the gang of rough-looking aliens within. Naturally, Jar-Jar unwittingly picked a fight with one, spilling the Dug's drink all over his face. Fortunately, Anakin was able to convince the Dug to not beat the Gungan into a pulp.

"Hi!" Anakin greeted as Qui-Gon helped Jar-Jar to his feet, "Your buddy here was about to be turned into orange goo. He picked a fight with a Dug, an especially dangerous Dug called Sebulba."

"Nosir, nosir!" Jar-Jar cried, "Mesa hate crunchen! Dat's da last ting mesa wanten!"

"Nevertheless, the boy is right… You were heading for trouble," the older Jedi interjected, looking kindly at Anakin, "Thank you, my young friend."

"Mesa doen nutten!" Jar-Jar exclaimed loudly. Rhys walked next to the distraught Gungan.

"Fear attracts the fearful," she stated matter-of-factly, "He was trying to overcome his fear by squashing you… be less afraid."

"And that works for you?" Padmé asked, an amused smile on her face.

"To a point." Anakin smiled broadly at her reply, walking next to Padmé.

The group continued on until they stopped at a fruit stand run by a poor, old woman that Anakin seemed to know well. As thy talk, Anakin digs in his pockets, pulling out a few dingy coins. He dropped one of them in the sand. Qui-Gon bent to pick it up, revealing for a moment his lightsaber hanging on his belt. Rhys saw Anakin's attention flicker over to the silver cylinder, then hastily away when he noticed her attention.

"Gracious, my bones are aching…" The old woman, Jira, said as she looked out into the distance, "Storm's coming Ani, better get home quick." Anakin nodded and turned to Qui-Gon.

"Do you have shelter?"

"We'll head back to our ship," Qui-Gon replied, looking at the clouds of dust approaching. Rhys shook her head imperceptively – it would be nearly impossible for them to make it back to the ship through a raging sandstorm.

"Is it far?"

"It's on the outskirts," Padmé answered him. The boy shook his head worriedly.

"You'll never reach the outskirts in time… sandstorms are very dangerous," he exclaimed, leading them down another street, "Come with me. Hurry!" The group followed him as the wind began to pick up around them. At first it was just a little bit of sand swirling around their feet, but that eventually grew into a howling sea of stinging sand. Rhys could barely see her hand in front of her face when Anakin pointed them towards a small slave's hovel in the slave quarters. Anakin opened the door and shook the sand out of his dusty hair.

"Mom! Mom, I'm home!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Shmi Skywalker was shocked when she saw what her son had brought home with him. Rhys smiled as she saw the older woman's worry slough off into exasperation. She got the feeling that this wasn't the first time the boy had brought someone - or something - he found into their home.

"These are my friends, Mom," Anakin chirped, "This is Padmé, and… gee, I don't know any of your names," he confessed abashedly. Rhys could feel the mother's worry start to return so she stepped forward to introduce herself.

"I'm Rhys Talik," she said, clasping hands with Shmi, "Your son was kind enough to offer us shelter from the sandstorm." Mentally, she nudged Qui-Gon to introduce the rest of their party.

"I'm Qui-Gon Jinn, and this is Jar-Jar Binks." Artoo gave a little beep at being left out.

"And our droid, R2-D2," Padmé supplied.

"I'm building a droid," Anakin said excitedly to Padmé, "You wanna see?" Padmé glanced back at her sister, who gave her a subtle "go on" gesture. "Come on! Let me show you Threepio!" The boy led her into another room, Artoo not far behind. Qui-Gon pulled out a few capsules from his utility belt, handing them to Shmi.

"I have enough food for a meal," he told her. The slave woman took them gratefully.

"Oh thank you…. I'm sorry if I was abrupt. I'll never get used to Anakin's surprises."

"He's a very special boy," Rhys chimed in. Shmi looked at her like she had discovered some great secret.

"I know," she replied softly, quickly setting to making the meal. Suddenly, Qui-Gon's communicator beeped loudly, drawing him from the small kitchen and back into the main room. Rhys eyed him interestedly, sending him a clear mental message: _Tell me later_. Qui-Gon nodded inconspicuously and turned away.

"May I help you?" Rhys asked, standing next to the slave woman. Shmi nodded, handing her the spoon to the pot.

As she stirred the slowly forming stew, Rhys took the time to observe Shmi as she assembled plates and utensils for her guests. The years of hard work as a slave had not been kind to her, but the rough skin and weathered features only brushed at her quiet beauty. She had a sort of reserved power about her, the power of one contented with her lot in life. As Rhys dug deeper, she found that the woman's only wish in life was for her son to have more than the life of a slave.

Once the food was ready, Shmi called in the others to sit around the large table in the main room. Anakin gazed wide-eyed at the full bowl of food in front of him, causing his mother to smile happily at him. Rhys knew that he had probably never had that much food all to himself in his entire life.

Over the sound of dinner, they conversed, staying away from any details of why they were on Tatooine. The only information Qui-Gon offered was that their ship was damaged and needed repairs. Eventually, the conversation wandered over to the topic of Tatooine's sanction of slavery on the planet.

"All slaves have transmitters placed inside their bodies somewhere," Shmi explained sadly, pouring the drinks.

"I've been working on a scanner to try and locate them, but no luck." Anakin sounded a little frustrated that one of his creations didn't work, but otherwise accepted his own slavery as a fact of life.

"Any attempt to escape…"

"And they blow you up. Boom!" Padmé and Jar-Jar looked horrified. Rhys pitied her younger sister's naïve view of the galaxy.

"How wude!"

"I can't believe there is still slavery in the galaxy," Padmé interjected, "The Republic's anti-slavery laws-"

Shmi cut her off abruptly, "The Republic doesn't exist out here – we must survive on our own." An awkward silence ensued.

Anakin attempted to end the embarrassment, "Has anyone ever seen a podrace?"

Padmé shook her head no in response. Rhys noticed Shmi's concern as soon as her son spoke. Jar-Jar broke the silence by shooting his long tongue across the table to grab a piece of fruit from a bowl. Qui-Gon gave him a dirty look as the Gungan grinned sheepishly.

"They have podracing on Malastare," Rhys provided, "Very fast, very dangerous." What she didn't add was that several years ago, she had been assigned to a mission on Malastare. The objective of the undercover mission was to pose as a young, skilled pilot looking for a job from one of the crime lords that ruled over the races. Thankfully, she was able to find the information she needed before she was sent out to race.

"I'm the only human who can do it," Shmi looked askance at her son, "Mom, what? I'm not bragging, it's true. Watto says he's never heard of a human doing it."

"You must have Jedi reflexes if you race pods," Qui-Gon praised, causing the boy to smile. Jar-Jar attempted to snare another fruit with his tongue, but Qui-Gon, in a flash, grabs it between his thumb and forefinger disapprovingly. "Don't do that again."

The Gungan yelped something unintelligible, too startled to do anything else. Qui-Gon released the tongue, snapping it back into Jar-Jar's mouth. Padmé, Shmi, and Anakin looked on in amazement.

"I… I was wondering… something…" Anakin mumbled.

"What?"

"Well, uhhh… you're a Jedi Knight, aren't you?" he hedged.

"What makes you think that?" the older man cocked an eyebrow.

"I saw your laser sword," Anakin confessed, "Only Jedi carry that kind of weapon." Qui-Gon leaned back and slowly smiled.

"Perhaps I killed a Jedi and stole it from him," he posed. The boy reared back, seemingly offended that he would even suggest such a thing.

"I don't think so… No one can kill a Jedi Knight!" he exclaimed. The Jedi was taken aback by the intensity of his belief.

"I wish that were so…" Qui-Gon answered softly, "Yes, I am a Jedi – as is Master Talik." Anakin gaped at the female Jedi who nodded serenely at him.

"Wizard…" he breathed softly, then got a grip on himself, "I had a dream I was a Jedi. I came back here and freed all the slaves… Have you come to free us?" He looked entreatingly to Qui-Gon.

"No… I'm afraid not…"

"I think you have. Why else would you be here?"

Qui-Gon thought for a moment, then spoke. "I can see there's no fooling you," he leaned forward, "You mustn't let anyone know about us. We're on our way to Coruscant, the central system in the Republic on a very important mission, and it must be kept a secret." Anakin looked amazed and asked how they ended up in the Outer Rim.

"Our ship was damaged, and we're stranded here until we can repair it," Padmé said sadly. Anakin was all too eager to offer his help.

"I can help! I can fix anything!"

"I believe you can, but our first job is to acquire the parts we need," Qui-Gon said gently.

"And wit no-nutten moola to trade…"

"These junk dealers must have a weakness of some kind!" Despair crept into Padmé's voice. Up until now, she had remained hopeful that they would be able to fix the ship and make it to Coruscant, but now she seemed to realize the gravity of the situation.

"Gambling," Shmi said, shaking her head slightly, "Everything here revolves around betting on those awful races."

"Podracing… Greed can be a powerful ally…." Rhys reminded Qui-Gon, "If it's used properly."

The wheels in Rhys' head began to spin as Anakin excitedly told them about the pod he was building, and the upcoming Boonta Eve race. Naturally, Shmi protested to her son's risky plan – there was no guarantee that Watto would even let him enter the race, and it was extremely dangerous. Rhys almost rolled her eyes when Qui-Gon asked if there was anyone friendly to the Republic nearby. _Of course there isn't_ , she thought, _The entire planet bows to the will of the Hutts._

"Mom, you said that the biggest problem in the universe is no one helps each other," Anakin pled. Shmi seemed torn between helping the two Jedi and her love for her son.

"I'm sure Qui-Gon doesn't want to put your son in danger," Padmé said diplomatically, "We'll find another way."

"No, Ani's right, there is no other way…" Shmi replied sadly, looking between the two Jedi and taking a deep breath, "I may not like it, he can help you…. He was meant to help you."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When the storm died down, Qui-Gon led the group back to Watto's shop. Vendors and street people were cleaning up the messy streets and rebuilding shop owners' stalls. When they reached the store front, Rhys ordered Jar-Jar to sit on a small box and stay there. The Gungan nodded his large head, watching the activity surrounding him with growing nervousness.

Padmé stopped Qui-Gon as he was about to enter the shop, her disapproval clearly written on her face. "Are you sure about this? Trusting our fate to a boy we hardly know. The Queen would not approve." Rhys winced at the blatant condemnation in her sister's voice.

"The Queen doesn't need to know," he replied brusquely, brushing her off as he marched inside. Padmé narrowed her eyes and sat down huffily next to Jar-Jar and Artoo.

"Well, I don't approve," she pouted. Rhys walked over to her sister and laid a hand on her cheek.

"You worry too much," she murmured. Padmé seemed to relax a little bit, releasing a heavy sigh, "The Force will guide us."

"I just hope Qui-Gon knows what he's doing," she replied softly.

 _Me too_ , Rhys thought. This wouldn't be the first time Qui-Gon's rash decisions had made their mission much more difficult, but she felt a glimmer of hope pulse through the Force. She sat with Padmé for a little while, offering comfort to the young Queen. After a little while, her communicator buzzed, drawing her to the sheltered side of Watto's store to answer it.

"Talik," she answered.

"How's it going, Master?" Tam's anxious voice filtered through the comm. Rhys rolled her eyes at her padawan's worry.

"Fine, Tam," she replied shortly, "Why did you call me?"

"I… uh, well…" he mumbled, "I just… felt that I needed to talk to you. I sensed worry…"

 _Through our bond,_ Rhys finished mentally. Tam's empathetic nature allowed him to read her emotions through their Force-connection much more easily than any other person, but Rhys also accredited that to his close contact with her over the past two years.

"Well, that and the ship received a transmission a few hours ago from Naboo," he said hastily, "I'm assuming Qui-Gon already told you."

"No, he didn't," she replied flatly, "We've been a little occupied by the sandstorm and trying to find a way off this rock." Tam snorted.

"Of course he didn't. Now I owe Obi-Wan fifteen credits." His Master's eyes narrowed.

"Was I the subject of a bet, Padawan?" she asked hotly. The boy chuckled nervously.

"Speak of the Sith, here he is – Obi-Wan, it's your turn!" Rhys could hear frantic scrambling accompanied by muted arguing. Tam must have won, because soon Obi-Wan's exasperated voice came from the commlink.

"What, Rhys?"

"My padawan has just made me aware of the subject of your bet, Obi-Wan," he grew strangely silent, "Would you care to illuminate?"

"Not really, no," he replied weakly.

"Spit it out, Kenobi!"

"You're mad, aren't you?" he said blankly.

"Oh come on!"

"Definitely mad."

"Kenobi!" she hissed angrily, making sure her voice wasn't attracting attention.

"What?" he asked innocently.

"I'll take this to Qui-Gon if I must!" she declared. Obi-Wan immediately fell quiet. Rhys cheered in silent victory.

"It was just a little bet," he attempted to mollify her, "After I talked to Qui-Gon earlier, Tam made the remark that he thought that Qui-Gon would probably tell you about the transmission. I know padawans are supposed to have a bit more faith in their Masters, but I happen to know Qui-Gon better, so I bet fifteen credits that he wouldn't."

Rhys rubbed her face in exasperation, "In the future, please refrain from making bets with my padawan… he's obviously been spending too much time with you and Qui-Gon while I've been gone." Obi-Wan made a quick noise of agreement.

"I'm sorry," he apologized lamely, "Do you want to hear about the transmission?"

"I don't know, Obi-Wan, do you think Qui-Gon will tell me later?" Obi-Wan sighed heavily.

"You're never going to let me forget about this, are you?"

"Never," Rhys vowed, then more serious, "What did the transmission say?"

Obi-Wan sighed again, but replied, "It was from the Governor of Theed – he wanted the Queen to contact him, but I believe that it's a ruse by the Trade Federation to find us."

"We don't have much time, then," Rhys said sadly, "I can only hope Qui-Gon's plan to get the hyperdrive works, or else we could be stuck here for a very long time."

"I'll let you know if anything else happens," he promised, "May the Force be with you."

"May the Force be with you." Rhys turned off her communicator and went back to sit next to Padmé and Jar-Jar. Her sister gave her a questioning look when she reappeared from the alleyway.

"You didn't sound very happy back there," she said bluntly. Rhys shook her head tiredly.

"One of the joys of having a padawan, young one," she said, not elaborating any further on her discussion with Obi-Wan. She knew that Padmé would probably be upset with news of the transmission. As Qui-Gon had said earlier, "The Queen doesn't need to know…"

Not long after, Qui-Gon emerged from the junk dealer's shop, looking marginally less grumpy about their predicament than before. He said nothing about his deal with Watto, but Rhys got the feeling that Qui-Gon had gotten exactly what he'd wanted from the Toydarian. The group walked in guarded silence as they headed back to the Skywalker home.

Anakin had been very excited to show them his podracer when they got to the house. Rhys was slightly surprised when he unveiled a small pod and set of engines, all cleverly and neatly constructed from things the boy had collected. Anakin set about tinkering with the pod and engines almost immediately, his face lighting up at the prospect of having others see his work.

"Would you like some help?" Rhys questioned, ducking under the engine that Anakin was working beneath.

"Sure," he shrugged, "The other one needs to have its connector cables stabilized." Rhys nodded and set about completing the task. She laid under the second engine and began to pair up the loose wiring to stabilize it. She soon found herself relaxing to the easy rhythm of fixing things, allowing herself to meditate in the process.

Before she knew it, Rhys became aware of Anakin's vast presence in the Force. He was blindingly bright, even more so than Master Yoda's meditative presence. Like most Force-sensitive children, Anakin used the Force instinctively, causing little ripples here and there to achieve his ends. His control and precision were definitely lacking, but he made up for it with sheer power.

Rhys continued to work on the engine, moving on to other components as she finished the task Anakin had given her. She didn't even bother moving out from under the pod when a group of local children came to greet Anakin. When the boy introduced her, she merely waved an arm above her to indicate her position. Once the children had left, Rhys extricated herself from underneath the pod.

"It all looks good under there, Ani," she reported, wiping a bit of grease off of her face with a towel. The boy's face split in a grin.

"Great!" he exclaimed, fiddling with the control panel in the cockpit of the pod, "Are all Jedi good at fixing things?" he asked without looking up.

"No," she replied amusedly, "Most, like Qui-Gon, understand the basics. Others like myself and Qui-Gon's padawan are quite skilled at making repairs and adjustments. My padawan is utterly hopeless when it comes to machines." Anakin looked up from the control panel, amazement on his face.

"You have a padawan?" he asked incredulously, "But you're not old!" Rhys chuckled – there were many that had made that observation over the past few years, amazed that to see a Jedi that looked as young as she did with a padawan barely half her age.

"Yes, his name is Tamai Olo," she answered, eyes twinkling, "He's twelve."

"Wizard," Anakin breathed before returning to work, only to casually call out, "Hey, Jar-Jar! Stay away from those energy binders."

Rhys looked over to the front of the engines where the clumsy Gungan was next to the binder plates. He seemed to look more warily on the pulsing purple beam of energy that connected the two engines. "Who, mesa?"

"If your hand gets caught in that beam, it'll go numb for hours," Anakin called back. Rhys looked on, mentally cursing the Gungan as she watched him drop a wrench and bend over to get it directly beneath the beam. He managed to put his mouth directly in the path of the energy beam, causing his entire mouth to become numb. Rhys shook her head as Jar-Jar yelped something unintelligible – well, more unintelligible than usual – and proceeded to drop the wrench again, this time in the engine rotor fan, getting his hand stuck in between the blades. Rolling her eyes, Rhys went over to help the clumsy being.

Qui-Gon approached the little group with a small battery in hand. Everyone backed away from the pod once Anakin got in the cockpit. Rhys finally managed to get Jar-Jar's massive hand loose and pulled him away from the engine as Anakin started it up with a roar. Everyone cheered as Shmi Skywalker looked on, smiling sadly.

* * *

Rhys was almost bowled over by Anakin as he rushed in from the balcony where he had been talking with Qui-Gon. She saw the older Jedi insert a small datachip into his commlink, then contact Obi-Wan. She decided to observe from the doorway rather than interrupt.

"Yes, Master?" Obi-Wan answered immediately.

"Make an analysis of this blood sample I'm sending you," Qui-Gon ordered, staring thoughtfully at the screen, "I need a midichlorian count."

"Wait a minute… All right. I've got it," Obi-Wan sounded confused, "Something must be wrong with the transmission."

"Here's a signal check," Qui-Gon replied. Rhys could feel his anxiety heightening, eager to hear of his padawan's findings.

"Strange… the transmission seems to be in good order, but the reading's off the chart – over twenty thousand!" Obi-Wan exclaimed, "Even Rhys doesn't have a midichlorian count that high!" Rhys held her breath – her own midichlorian count hovered around eighteen thousand, while her Master's was just below that. A boy with over twenty thousand midichlorians was simply unheard of!

"No Jedi has," Qui-Gon said thoughtfully.

"What does it mean?" Obi-Wan asked, clearly nervous.

"I'm not sure…" Rhys sensed movement on the other side of the kitchen and retreated into the shadows. Shmi appeared, having heard the entire conversation. Qui-Gon looked up to see her standing in the doorway. The woman blushed slightly, embarrassed at having been caught listening, and went back to the kitchen.

Unseen, Rhys crept silently back to the room that she shared with Padmé, pondering the things she had overheard. This would definitely throw a wrench into their plans to get to Coruscant. She tossed and turned on her cot, unable to sleep, until she finally had enough and walked out into the main room of the house. Thanking the Force that it was empty, Rhys pulled out her communicator and commed her padawan.

"Tam, I need you to-"

"He's asleep, Rhys," she was interrupted by a familiar voice. Rhys huffed a sigh when she realized that it was Obi-Wan.

"Of course he is," she grumbled, "I don't even know why I bothered at this point." One of her well-known grievances against her padawan was his long-standing relationship with his bed. "Tam sleeps like the dead, anyway."

Obi-Wan murmured an agreement, "He actually fell asleep a little while ago. I forgot to give him back his commlink after he threw it at me to talk to you earlier," he confessed sheepishly, "It's been in my pocket since this afternoon."

Rhys was strangely touched by the innocent gesture. It was comforting to have her apprentice in the hands of someone that provided an appropriate male role model, and was a resounding older brother to the younger boy. "Thank you," she said sincerely.

"Well, I suppose now we're even," he drawled comically, "I'm assuming that you didn't tell Qui-Gon about the bet." Rhys resisted the urge to laugh loudly.

"No, I didn't," she chuckled, "But that doesn't give you an excuse to do it again." Obi-Wan laughed at this, and the two friend soon fell into the familiar rhythm of conversation and banter that they used to enjoy at the Temple. When they finally said goodbye, Rhys didn't notice the smiling pair of eyes in the kitchen that had heard every word.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

 **Hello everyone! First of all, thanks to everyone who reviewed over the past few days! Small docket today, and here it is!**

 **.2016 \- Sorry for not answering your question ages ago, but life got in the way. Yes, I plan for them to have more feeling by the end of the Phantom Menace, but it won't really start to show until we start getting deeper into the time before Attack of the Clones. Stay tuned!**

 **Robinbird79 \- I know, I particularly love writing fluff and banter scenes between them, so there's plenty more to come! Also, I'm so happy that you love Tam - he's one of my favorite characters.**

 **CardiacCane \- I actually have read To Save the Queen and all of its sequels - I thought it was super awesome! Yes, Jar-Jar is a pain, so I tried to cut him out as much as possible. I also plan on cutting him out as much as I can from certain episodes of the Clone Wars, if I can. On the subject of Rhys' teaching style, yes, she does teach a lot like Yoda does. I hope to expound on that a little more in the future. Thanks for your detailed reviews!**

 **Quick question/comment/whatever... I've recently really gotten into Rebels, and I've just fallen in love with Chopper - I think he's frickin' hilarious! Anyway... I wanted to maybe incorporate him into the story, but I thought that I'd run it past you guys first. Tell me if you think it's a good idea or not, I won't be offended or anything... just looking for new branches to take through the next few periods of time.**

 **That would be all for today... Thanks again to all of my wonderful readers!** **You really make everything worthwhile! Disclaimer: It's terrible that I don't own Star Wars... really... but hey, I can watch it and write it to my heart's content!**

* * *

Rhys rolled her eyes as she caught a mental image of Qui-Gon's bet. He had made yet another risky deal with the Toydarian before the rest of the group had even arrived at the race. Her only consolation was that he had mentally transmitted every detail to her, from his not-so-subtle influence of the chance cube to the Skywalker's freedom. For Anakin's sake, Rhys managed not to look too annoyed with him as she slid off her eopie, helping Padmé off as well.

Both Rhys and Anakin understood the jab in Huttese as Watto flew by. The boy looked confused as he turned to Qui-Gon. "What did he mean by that?"

"I'll tell you later," the older Jedi assured. His answer was good enough for Anakin, but Rhys wasn't so easily fooled.

"You and I are going to have a very long talk later, Master Jinn," she hissed under her breath. Qui-Gon merely turned an innocent face to her. Frustrated, she stomped off to walk ahead with Shmi, muttering obscenities under her breath.

"I take it that he's done something else?" Shmi asked as Rhys came up to her.

"I think the only question I should ask at this point is what he hasn't done," she replied disdainfully. Although she respected Qui-Gon greatly, his controlling tendencies and reliance on the Living Force irked her. Shmi touched her shoulder in sympathy, leading them into the arena.

* * *

As soon as Anakin crossed the finish line, the crowd went crazy. Padmé hugged Jar-Jar, screaming with joy and jumping up and down. Rhys embraced Shmi, feeling the older woman's worry for her son melt away. Over Shmi's shoulder, Rhys caught sight of Qui-Gon giving her what could only be described as a smug smile. She ignored it to the best of her ability as everyone raced onto the field to congratulate Anakin on his victory. The boy didn't know it, but he had just won something far more precious: his own freedom.

Afterwards, the main hangar was almost empty as the racers and audience dispersed. Qui-Gon soon appeared with the parts needed for their ship strapped to several eopies. After a tearful goodbye, Padmé and Jar-Jar reluctantly mounted their eopies.

"I'll return the eopies by midday," Qui-Gon promised, riding off after Padmé and Jar-Jar. Rhys gave Shmi one last hug. As she did, a vision came upon her.

 _Shmi gazing shyly up at a weathered man with kind eyes, blushing as he took her hand-_

 _A dark-haired teenager hugging her tightly as the twin suns ducked beneath the horizon-_

 _A sparsely populated wedding, but looks of sheer happiness on the bride and groom's faces as they faced each other…_

"Thank you for everything," she whispered as the visions faded, letting her gratitude show, "Your kindness has saved countless lives, and for that I sense you will find happiness. May the Force be with you, Shmi Skywalker." As the two women pulled apart, Rhys could see the glint of tears in Shmi's eyes as she waved farewell. Rhys gracefully mounted her eopie and headed into the open desert.

* * *

Obi-Wan and Tam were there to greet them when they arrived back at the ship. As soon as his Master had dismounted, Tam rushed over to help her. After a quick hug, they carried the rest of the bags inside the ship. When they came back out, Qui-Gon was speaking to Obi-Wan.

"Start getting this hyperdrive generator installed. I'm going back for some unfinished business. I won't be long." Qui-Gon ordered, mounting his eopie.

"Why do I sense we've picked up another pathetic life form?" Obi-Wan sounded exasperated with his Master.

"It's the boy who's responsible for getting these parts," Qui-Gon replied shortly, then turned away. Rhys caught Obi-Wan's eye as he pushed past them into the ship without a word.

 _Are you all right?_ She asked mentally, ushering Tam back in the ship.

 _I'll tell you later_ , he replied, not letting any emotion seep through his thoughts. Rhys was still suspicious, but resolved to put it off until they had a moment alone.

"Obi-Wan and I are going to fix the hyperdrive," she said to Tam as they headed down to the engine room of the Naboo spacecraft, "I need you to keep an eye on Jar-Jar and make sure Padmé gets settled. I'll be up as soon as I can." Tam nodded in reply and headed back up to the main hold. Rhys opened the door to the engine room to find Obi-Wan already beneath the hyperdrive, installing the new parts.

Pulling a small set of tools from her belt, Rhys began taking out the damaged parts on the top and sides of the hyperdrive, removing large portions that had been burned. The two Jedi worked in silence for a while, wordlessly communicating to hand each other tools and levitate parts across the room.

"So…." Rhys finally broke the silence, "What's wrong?" Obi-Wan huffed a frustrated sigh as he pulled out a difficult piece of wiring.

"Qui-Gon is… interested… in this slave boy that won the parts," he said crossly, "He's getting sidetracked from the mission over a boy that the Council will never accept – Can't you sense that the boy is dangerous, even from here?" Rhys closed her eyes and sensed Anakin's presence rapidly approaching. His emotions radiated into the Force around him, all of his fears, passions, and thoughts projected.

"I just don't understand why Qui-Gon is so adamant about bringing him to the Temple!" Obi-Wan continued. Rhys got the feeling that her friend had been holding these emotions in for a while, and was finally venting them now. "Why doesn't he just… just…."

 _Why doesn't he just listen to me?_ Rhys finished mentally the words he couldn't say. She fiddled with the hyperdrive a little bit more in silence until Obi-Wan came out from underneath. He stood up, wiping his grease-spotted hands on a towel. Rhys could feel him release his tumultuous emotions into the Force, accepting the peace and calm that came with doing so.

"That's it, then," he said resignedly, "At least now we'll be able to get off this dust-covered rock." Rhys cracked a smile at her friend and followed him back up to the main hold where Tam, Padmé, Captain Panaka, and Jar-Jar were sitting at one of the tables.

"The hyperdrive's fixed," she reported. Padmé seemed to be relieved of a very heavy weight when she heard those words, her body relaxing.

"I take it we're just waiting for Master Jinn?" Panaka questioned, eyebrows raised.

"Yes, he's-" Rhys abruptly cut off as she sensed the imminent danger. Both she and Obi-Wan turned around to see a frantic Anakin rush into the main hold.

"Qui-Gon's in trouble!" Anakin panicked, "He says to take off, now!"

"Who are you?" Panaka asked, a little stunned by the boy's sudden appearance.

"He's a friend, Captain," Rhys said to soothe the older man's worries, "We have to tell the pilot." She rushed to the cockpit, followed by the Captain, Anakin, Padmé, and Obi-Wan. She entered the cockpit where the pilot, Ric Olie, was checking the newly repaired hyperdrive, "Qui-Gon is in trouble – he said to take off!"

"I don't see anything!" Ric scanned the empty desert in front of him.

"Over there!" Obi-Wan said quickly, spotting a small cloud of dust in the distance, "Fly low!" The pilot guided the ship over to the cloud of dust, lowering the ramp as he descended.

Rhys could sense the battle going on beneath them between Qui-Gon and his dark opponent. There was no doubt that Qui-Gon was skilled enough to hold off the attacker, but his opponent was far better. The Jedi quickly jumped onto the open ramp, leaving the dark attacker alone on the desert floor. As soon as the ramp was closed, Qui-Gon sat down on the floor, breathing heavily. Both Obi-Wan and Anakin rushed to his side as Rhys stood in the doorway with Artoo.

"Are you all right?" Anakin asked, his worry seeping into the air around him.

"I think so…" Qui-Gon replied breathlessly, "That was a surprise I won't soon forget."

"What was it?" Obi-Wan asked, eyeing his Master with concern.

"I don't know… but he was well trained in the Jedi arts. My guess is he was after the Queen."

"Do you think he'll follow us?" Anakin seemed more scared of the attacker now that Qui-Gon had admitted that he didn't know what it was.

The older Jedi shook his head, "We'll be safe enough once we're in hyperspace, but I have no doubt he knows our destination."

"What are we going to do about it?" Obi-Wan gave the boy beside him a perplexed look. Anakin returned his gaze innocently.

"We will be patient," Qui-Gon answered. Then, as if finally noticing that Obi-Wan was beside him, he gestured to his padawan, "Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Wow! You're a Jedi too?" Anakin exclaimed enthusiastically, "Pleased to meet you!" Obi-Wan gave a forced smile and shook the boy's hand. Satisfied that Qui-Gon was well attended, Rhys slipped up to the cockpit.

"How long until we reach Coruscant?" she asked the pilot, standing in the doorway. Ric Olie bent over one of his charts.

"If we take the Corellian Run through hyperspace all the way to Coruscant, it should only take about twelve hours. Best tell the rest of the ship to get some sleep," he reported. Rhys made a sound of approval and headed back to her quarters to wait out the upcoming hours.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

 **Another quick comment... six days until Rogue One comes out! I may or may not be going to the midnight premier... dressed as a clone... with a bunch of friends dressed as Darth Vader, Starkiller, and more clones... I'M SO EXCITED! ... Sorry... nerd moment over...**

 **Side note - Yay, the Tatooine scenes are over! To be honest, they're my least favorite scenes in The Phantom Menace. On to Coruscant!**

* * *

Rhys could feel Padmé's pain as she watched the message sent from Governor Bibble in the main hold of the ship. The young Queen had apparently snuck down to watch the recording again while everyone else was asleep. Rhys could sense Anakin with her, offering some sort of comfort in his own way.

Sitting up, Rhys looked over at her padawan sprawled across his own sleeping shelf, snoring softly as he nuzzled a pillow. She smiled at Tam's rumpled clothes and messy hair before sliding off her sleeping shelf and padding down the hall. As she passed Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's shared quarters, she was careful to mask her presence in the Force to avoid waking them up. She was so focused on sneaking past their door that she nearly ran into an orange-robed figure. The figure let out a frightened squeak before bracing themselves against the wall.

"Oh, it's just you," Padmé said as she lowered the hood of her handmaiden robes, "You scared me!"

"Not so loud," Rhys hissed under her breath, "We don't want anyone else to wake up!" She grabbed her sister's hand and steered her in the direction of the Queen's makeshift throne room. Thankfully, Sabé and the other handmaidens had already retired for the night and were – hopefully – sleeping in the adjoining bedroom. Once she had secured the door, Rhys turned to her sister.

"You aren't supposed to be wandering the ship alone, Padmé," she admonished, "Especially not at this hour."

"I couldn't sleep!" Padmé defended, crossing her arms, "And besides, I wasn't alone – both you and Anakin were awake too!" Rhys gave an exasperated sigh and placed her fingers on her temples.

"You're making it very difficult for the rest of us to protect you," she said tiredly, "It would be much easier if you just stayed in one place like the rest of the handmaidens." Padmé raised her chin in defiance, sinking into the throne and crossing her legs. Rhys threw her hands in the air in exasperation, "Fine! Wander the ship at night if it makes you feel better! Make sure to tell me the next time you do something rash and irresponsible!" She stalked from the room, not sparing a second glance as she left.

"Of all the reckless, impulsive, overbearing…" she muttered under her breath as she made her way back to her quarters, "What in the Force was she thinking… stubborn…"

Tam groggily cracked open an eyelid as he felt his Master return. He blearily rubbed the sleep from his eyes as she sat down on her bed huffily. "What's happened now?" he mumbled through a yawn.

"Her Majesty is proving to be very difficult when it comes to her own security," she grumbled, leaning back on the wall, "How can we ensure her safety when we don't know where she is at any given time? What if the ship was attacked? Could she get herself to one of the escape pods in time if I couldn't find her? What if she decides to contact Naboo? She could give away our position to the assassin! I know that she's worried about her people, and probably scared, and frustrated with the situation as much as I am, and-"

"Master, I know it's rude to interrupt, but you're starting to ramble a little louder than usual and I think that people can hear it," he said pointedly. Rhys closed her eyes and set her head back against the wall, releasing the tension in her body. Tam was right, of course. This was no time for an ill-conceived ramble. Yes, her sister was being irresponsible. Yes, Padmé was often impulsive, but the situation had required her to make split second decisions to have a chance at saving her people. No, there was nothing that she herself could do about their current predicament, except to provide security for the Queen and her entourage.

"You're right," she murmured, "It's just… been a long day." Tam gave a small smile, the corner of his mouth twitching upward.

"Good night, Master," he said, stifling a yawn and wrapping himself up in his blanket.

"Good night, Padawan," Rhys replied softly as the boy's soft snores filled the air.

* * *

When they finally came upon the endless cityscape of Coruscant, the ship erupted in a flurry of activity. Captain Panaka was hurriedly organizing and instructing the guards and pilots on their duties upon landing. The handmaidens were dressing up Sabé in the attire of the Queen again, as Padmé would still be playing the part of handmaiden. Rhys had offered to help Rabé, Eirtaé and Padmé get Sabé ready, but was quickly shooed out of the room by Eirtaé.

Rhys decided to comm her former Master in the meantime. Qui-Gon had already given the Council a watered-down version of the past events, but she wished to talk to Yoda about certain happenings that posed several problems, namely the Queen's protection, the crisis on Naboo, and Anakin, a problem in and of himself. She didn't think that the Council would take very kindly to the idea of him becoming a Jedi, unlike Qui-Gon, who was determined to train the boy at any cost. Pushing her thoughts to the back of her mind, Rhys turned on her communicator.

"Yes, Padawan?" a grumbly voice answered. Rhys suppressed her smile – even after she was no longer his padawan, Master Yoda still called her that, insisting that she would always be his padawan as she had still much to learn. She never minded, and preferred to think of it as a term of endearment.

"Master, we are coming upon Coruscant and will soon land," she reported.

Yoda hummed in agreement, "Good to hear your voice, it is, Padawan. Concerned, we were, that injured you had been. Continue to find you, trouble does," he accused good-naturedly.

"Unfortunately, Master, it does," she agreed, "All trouble aside, I wanted to ask you for some advice on several… hitches… on the mission."

Yoda sighed heavily, "Speak of this later, we will. Give your report to the Council with Master Jinn, you must, then speak we will."

"I understand, Master," Rhys replied, "May the Force be with you, Master."

"And with you, Padawan."

Rhys put her comm back in her pocket and strode purposefully to the cockpit. Anakin was standing by Ric Olie, who was teaching him how to fly the Nubian ship. Both were so engrossed by the ship's controls that they didn't even realize that she was standing in the doorway.

"There's Chancellor Valorum's shuttle," Rhys commented as she gazed out the large window. Anakin whirled around in surprise, beaming widely when he realized who it was.

"Hi!" he exclaimed excitedly before turning back to the window. Rhys just shook her head at the boy's exuberance and walked back to the throne room. The handmaidens and Panaka had asked to be told when the ship was landing.

"Your Highness?" She asked, knocking slightly on the door. Rabé answered it, peeking her orange-hooded head through the crack. "We're about to land." The handmaiden nodded hurriedly before quickly shutting the door again. She notified Panaka on her way to the main hold, then sent Tam to fetch Anakin from the cockpit. The padawan returned not only with Anakin in tow, but also with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. The Queen and her entourage gradually made their way to the ship's ramp in preparation for landing.

The sleek Nubian spacecraft landed gracefully on the platform high above the street level of the Galactic Capitol. The Chancellor's guards and attendants were waiting for them, with Senator Palpatine and the Chancellor himself at their head. The ramp lowered and the four Jedi descended, accompanied by Anakin and Jar-Jar. The Queen and her retinue followed closely, greeting their welcoming committee eagerly.

Rhys eyed the Senator from Naboo carefully – generally, she thought that politicians were an untrustworthy sort, and this one seemed more so than usual. He seemed overly flattering, bestowing formality upon the Queen and Chancellor. As the Queen and her entourage made their way to the waiting air taxi, he continued to oil his way into the Queen's good graces.

The four Jedi stayed by Valorum as the air taxi began to fill. Jar-Jar and Anakin started to follow Padmé into the air taxi, but then stopped and turned back to look questioning at the Jedi. Qui-Gon waved them on, turning to the Chancellor as he watched the taxi move off into the city.

"I must speak with the Jedi Council immediately, Your Honor," Qui-Gon reported, "The situation has become much more complicated." Valorum acknowledged him with a nod of his head. Both Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan bowed, then moved off in the direction of their waiting transport.

"Chancellor," Rhys said, inclining her head respectfully. Tam followed after his Master, ducking his head.

"Master Talik," Valorum replied, "We are pleased to see you well after your conflict with the Trade Federation. There were some that thought that you and your apprentice had been killed in the crash."

Rhys gave a small smile, "It takes more than a crash to kill a Jedi, Your Honor, and Jedi padawans are known for their excellent survival skills." The Chancellor gave a rare smile.

"Well, I should hope that holds true, Master Talik," he said softly before turning back to his shuttle. Tam looked between his Master and the Chancellor in bewilderment. Ignoring her padawan's questioning looks, Rhys strode purposefully over to their transport back to the Temple, as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon's had left without them. Once they were in the transport, however, Tam didn't bother holding back his questions.

"I thought you didn't like politicians, Master," he hedged, looking sideways at his Master. Rhys cocked an eyebrow at her apprentice.

"I don't like most politicians, Tam," she emphasized, "Chancellor Valorum just happens to be one of the more likable politicians that I've met. He tends to be more… open-minded than the rest of the senate, and has a good relationship with the Council."

"How do you know him?" Tam pressed, eager to hear about her past experiences. It frustrated him to no end that his Master wasn't the most open of Jedi, only sharing information when asked, but he usually just assumed that came from her role as a Jedi Shadow.

Rhys shook her head at her over-eager apprentice, "My Master often took me with him to give advice or to offer help to the Chancellor in the early years of his election. Master Yoda trusts him greatly, so I grew to trust him as well. He seemed adamant in his mission to debate with me, to Master Yoda's amusement. As you know, he is a staunch supporter of the Jedi Code, while I tend to… bend rules to suit my purposes."

"You don't like to bend rules, Master," Tam replied matter-of-factly, "You like to pick them apart into pieces and then stomp on them if you don't like them." Rhys looked over to her padawan in slight shock at his words. He was observant, true, but he needed to work on filtering his observations.

She shrugged her shoulders slightly, "I suppose I do, but I do follow many rules… when it suits me."

"I think that's why you and Master Jinn get along so well," Tam commented, pulling out a datapad from his bag. Rhys made a rather undignified snort.

"Master Jinn has even less regard for rules in general than I do. At least I listen to the Council's decisions – he could honestly care less about what they think." Tam merely rolled his eyes and went back to reading his datapad.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"My only conclusion can be that it was a Sith Lord," Qui-Gon reported, standing in front of the twelve Jedi Councilmembers. Rhys and her padawan stood behind Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan as they gave their report.

"A Sith Lord?!" Mace Windu sounded personally affronted that someone would dare suggest that the Sith had made an appearance. Rhys tried not to roll her eyes.

"Impossible! The Sith have been extinct for a millennium," Ki-Adi Mundi said in an attempt to counter Mace's outrage.

"Need I remind you, we sat here three years ago debating the continued existence of the Sith after Master Talik killed the one on Nar Oto," Depa Billaba reminded them. Rhys flashed a quick smile to one of her favorite Councilmembers.

"The very Republic is threatened, if truly involved the Sith are," Yoda said sagely. Mace voiced his disbelief that the Sith could come back without the them knowing. Rhys bit her tongue to keep from speaking – while she respected Windu as a powerful and skilled Jedi, she didn't agree with him very often. After she had killed Torra on Nar Oto, he had led the opposition to deny her the rank of Jedi Knight. Mace was also known to have a very rigid interpretation of the Jedi Code, and did not sanction any deviances from it. He lived in a galaxy of black and white, Sith and Jedi, order and chaos.

"Hard to see, the Dark Side is," Yoda said, putting the matter to rest, "Discover who this assassin is, we must." Rhys' heart dropped slightly when she heard her Master's words. _Assassin…_ she thought as the Council continued to discuss how to reveal the assassin's identity, _Assassins don't carry red-bladed lightsabers!_

"We will use all our resources here to unravel this mystery and discover the identity of your attacker," Windu said, closing the discussion entirely, "May the Force be with you."

Rhys turned to leave with Obi-Wan and Tam, but stopped when she realized that Qui-Gon hadn't moved, even after the blatant dismissal. She mentally cursed the older Jedi, knowing that he was going to bring up Anakin and open up an entirely new can of brain-worms.

 **Master, what is he doing?** Tam spoke through their bond, his confusion seeping through. She didn't answer as Master Yoda asked Qui-Gon if he had more to say.

"With your permission, my master, I have encountered a vergence in the Force," he reported. Immediately, Yoda's eyes flickered to his former padawan as he remembered Qui-Gon's words more than fourteen years ago, describing the girl he had found as a vergence in the Force.

"A vergence, you say?" Yoda mused thoughtfully.

Mace Windu clearly remembered the events that had occurred fourteen years earlier as well, "Located around a person?"

Qui-Gon nodded in affirmation, "A boy… his cells have the highest concentration of midichlorians I have seen in a life form. It is possible he was conceived by the midichlorians."

"You're referring to the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force," Mace accused skeptically, "You believe it's this boy?"

"I don't presume-"

Yoda cut him off, "But you do! Revealed, your opinion is." Rhys groaned inwardly… Qui-Gon was really in for it now.

"I request the boy be tested," Qui-Gon asserted firmly. The Councilmembers looked between each other as they pondered his words. They were quiet for a moment until Windu turned in Rhys' direction.

"What are your thoughts on this boy, Master Talik?" he asked. Rhys stepped forward under the gaze of all in the room.

"I believe Anakin Skywalker to be a very special boy," she said calmly, "I sense that he is destined for great things. He is powerful, but very inexperienced. If he is to be trained, he must be taught to control his power and use it for the good of the galaxy. There is, however, the question of his age to be taken into consideration, as to his own attachments and emotions." The Councilmembers seemed to take her words into consideration, turning away from her as they continued to debate mentally. Yoda finally broke the silence.

"Trained as a Jedi, you request for him, Master Jinn?"

"Finding him was the will of the Force, I have no doubt of that. There is too much happening here for it to be otherwise," Qui-Gon answered, taking a firm stance to convey his position.

"Bring him before us, then," Mace said tiredly. Rhys resisted a smirk – clearly the decision was not in his favor. Sensing the firm dismissal now, Rhys herded Tam and Obi-Wan out of the Council chambers, relieved when Qui-Gon followed. As soon as the doors behind them were closed, she rounded on Qui-Gon angrily.

"Why can't you just listen to the Council for once, Qui-Gon!" she hissed. Both padawans backed away at the clash of their two obstinate masters. Qui-Gon smiled infuriatingly back at her.

"I believe that it does them a bit of good to have someone stand up to them once and a while," he answered mildly, "Therefore, it is my duty to provide a bit of bucking under the system."

Rhys threw her hands up in the air, "Maybe if you listened to the Council once in a while, they would take you more seriously!" Qui-Gon merely shook his head in amusement and stepped into the waiting elevator, Obi-Wan slipping in behind him.

"I'll have Obi-Wan comm you when we next meet with the Queen," he said, still so infuriatingly calm as the doors closed. Rhys let out a quick noise of frustration before calming herself and releasing her emotions into the Force. Tam was staring wide-eyed at her when she turned to him. Rhys groaned and placed a hand on her forehead.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, Tam," she apologized wearily, "That's one argument between me and Qui-Gon that has been building up over a long time… we don't always agree on certain aspects of the Code." The padawan nodded hastily, not wishing to upset his Master further. Rhys placed a hand on her apprentice's shoulder, "Head over to the apartment and get some sleep – I still have to speak with Master Yoda before I leave."

The boy's face lit up at the mention of some extra hours of sleep and his long-awaited reunion with his bed. After giving his Master one last concerned look, Tam entered the elevator and disappeared from sight. As soon as he was gone, Rhys sank into one of the nearby chairs to wait for the Council to convene.

Within a matter of moments, the Council doors reopened and the Councilmembers left the room. Master Yoda, as usual, was the last to leave the Council chambers, standing in the center of the ring of chairs when all of the others had left. As Rhys entered the circular room she closed the doors behind her.

"Wished to speak to me, you did, Padawan?"

Rhys knelt before her Master as to be directly on his level, "Yes, Master, I wished to ask your opinion on the… conflict… between myself and Master Jinn. He believes that Anakin can be trained solely on his presence in the Force, but I don't agree. The boy is powerful, but he's very emotional and forms attachments easily."

Yoda closed his eyes thoughtfully before he spoke, "Clouded, the future is, by the Dark Side of the Force. Sense Skywalker's fate, I cannot. Agree with you, I do, that tested he must be."

"I just can't help but feel that he's important for the future… for the fate of Naboo… for the Jedi Order," she said, reminded of her past visions.

"Know the future, we do not," Yoda reminded gently, "But follow the will of the Force, we must. Meditate on this, I will…" Rhys nodded her assent and stood up.

"I'm going to speak with the Queen about her plans for the Senate session later," she said, bowing slightly to her former Master, "May the Force be with you, Master."

"May the Force be with you, Padawan."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

 **Hello everyone! Yeah, I'm a slacker, but it's served me well in life. As a token of my gratitude for all of you that still read/follow/review this story, here are the next three chapters!**

 **Disclaimer: I woke up this morning, rubbed my eyes... and realized that I still don't own Star Wars. Major buzz kill. As always please please PLEASE review!**

* * *

On her way up to Senator Palpatine's apartments in 500 Republica, Rhys decided to stop by her own apartment that was several floors below. When she entered apartment, all of the lights were off and the curtains drawn, just like when she had left it. She went to turn on the lights, but nearly tripped over a pair of boots sticking out from underneath the table.

Catching herself, she stumbled over to the couch and realized that her padawan had passed out on the familiar blue couch instead of trying to make it to his own bed. He must have gone right to sleep after pulling off his boots and wrapping himself up in several blankets. Rhys couldn't help but smile at the cocoon of blankets wound tightly around the boy's body – only his face and dark curly hair was visible.

Shaking her head, Rhys went to her bedroom and changed into a fresh pair of her usual dark brown and tan robes. She washed her face quickly and redid her hair into its bun laced with braids, then crept to the elevator. She took one last look back at her padawan – drooling slightly on the mound of blankets he was using as a pillow – and left the apartment.

When she reached the Senator's apartments, the guards immediately let her in, having become familiar with her over the course of their journey. Rabé met her at the door with a smile on her face and led the Jedi into the Queen's quarters. Rhys entered just as Eirtaé and Sabé were slipping an ornate red and gold headdress on Padmé's head.

"Dressing for battle, Your Highness?" she said, leaning against the doorway. Padmé turned to look at her sister, her face free of the Queen's white face paint.

"I might as well be…" Padmé trailed off solemnly, "This is my last chance to save our people, and if it doesn't work, I don't know what I'll do." Rhys gave a small smile and placed her hands on her sister's shoulders, gazing into the mirror at their reflection.

Though she was only fourteen, Rhys thought that Padmé had never looked more regal than she did at that moment, preparing to battle through the Senate to save her people. She understood why she had been elected Queen – she truly cared about the welfare of her people and home. Rhys sent her a wave of comfort through the Force, hoping that it would give her some strength to do what she had to do. Eirtaé came forward with a jar of face paint, placing it on the vanity in front of them.

"Would you like me to help you?" Rhys asked softly, moving to crouch by the side of Padmé's chair.

"If you want to…" Padmé answered hesitantly, shrugging as much as she could underneath all of the fabric. Rhys took that to be an affirmation and Force-pulled another chair from across the room for her to sit in. At a wave of Padmé's hand, her handmaidens filed out of the room, leaving them in silence.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you yesterday," Rhys apologized as she brushed the thick white paint over her sister's cheeks, "I was worried and scared and I took it out on you."

"I'm sorry for wandering around at night," Padmé countered, "You had every right to be frustrated – I know I'm not happy about the whole situation either." Rhys cocked an eyebrow.

"So you aren't happy to see me?"

Padmé rolled her eyes as well as she was able, "Your 'visit' was lovely, but I'm sure that we both agree that our current situation is not ideal. Why can't I ever see you when our lives aren't in danger?" she lamented.

Rhys kept her face blank as she answered, "I don't know if that'll ever be possible… we both seem to be particularly attractive to all walks of trouble." Padmé's face was completely white now, smoothing her facial features and making her appear to be older than her fourteen years. She picked up a jar of crimson paint and began placing a red dot on each of her cheekbones and the Scar of Remembrance on her lips.

"True," Padmé admitted, fiddling with her ornate sleeves.

"There…. All done," Rhys murmured softly, placing the paint and standing behind her sister, "You look beautiful, Padmé." The young Queen gazed at her reflection for a moment longer, then stood up and hugged her older sister, careful not to damage her makeup.

The two sisters stilled and pulled apart as Sabé came in the room, looking worried. "The boy is here, Your Highness, and he's asking for Padmé!" The Queen forgot her mask for a moment, craning her neck to try and catch a glimpse of him.

"Padmé!" Rhys hissed under her breath, "He doesn't know that you're the Queen!"

"Right…" she breathed, composing herself, "Tell Rabé to let him in, but tell her to say that I'm not here." Sabé nodded solemnly and went to convey the message. They listened intently as Rabé greeted Anakin at the door, informing him that Padmé wasn't in the apartment.

"We still have too many handmaidens," Rhys reminded her. Amidala's face fell as she realized her mistake. Sabé must have realized that as well, for she came purposefully striding into the room, accompanied by Eirtaé, "Let us pray that he didn't notice."

"Who is it?" Padmé asked regally, slipping into her queenly persona.

"Anakin Skywalker, to see Padmé, Your Highness," came the reply in Rabé's lilting Naboo country accent. The Queen stepped out into the main room, a picture of regality and command. Anakin gave a hurried bow at her entrance. Rhys, cursing the situation, quickly followed after the Queen and stood next to her. The boy's eyes widened as he caught sight of the Jedi Master standing beside the Queen.

"I've sent Padmé on an errand," Amidala said, her lower register disguising her true voice. Anakin's face fell at the news.

"Well… I'm going to the Jedi Temple to start my training, I hope," his gaze flickered to the Jedi Master in front of him, "I may not see her again… and… I just wanted to say goodbye."

"We will tell her for you," Amidala proclaimed, "We're sure her heart goes with you." Anakin's face lit up as he bowed respectfully.

"Thank you, Your Highness. I'm sorry to have disturbed you."

"Anakin, wait for a moment," Rhys said, stepping away from the Queen and stopping Anakin as he went to leave, "I can take you back to the Temple, just wait outside for a moment." He smiled at her gratefully and hurried back past Rabé. Rhys placed her hands on her sister's shoulders lightly as soon as he was out of the room, careful not to rumple the ornate dress.

"I'll speak with you again after the Senate session," she whispered, "Good luck." The young Queen nodded, tears welling in her eyes as she watched her sister leave the apartment.

Rhys found Anakin waiting for her at the elevator, tinkering with some small scraps of metal that he quickly placed in his pocket once he saw her. "I hope you don't mind if we make one quick stop before we go to the Temple," she said as they entered the elevator, "I have something very important to pick up." Anakin nodded eagerly as the elevator stopped on her apartment's floor.

"What's this place?" he asked as she walked over to her apartment's entrance.

"My apartment," she said, smiling a bit at the boy's look of wonder, "I don't always like living at the Temple, so when we're not off world on a mission Tam and I like to stay here. It gives us a bit of peace and quiet." She entered the main room, rolling her eyes when she saw that the lights were still off. Clearly, her padawan hadn't moved from his nest of blankets on the couch.

"So… what are we getting here?" he asked, gazing about the room as she turned on the lights. The Jedi Master gave a wry smile and gestured to the pile of blankets on the couch.

"My apprentice," she said drily, "He's been asleep since he got back from the Temple, and sleeps fairly heavily," she walked over to the couch and tugged off all of the blankets out of the padawan's grasp. Tam flinched at the sudden change in temperature and tucked his knees into his chest. "Tam, for Force's sake, wake up! We're going to be late!"

Tam mumbled something unintelligible and held his pillow tighter. His master made a sound of annoyance. "Fine, you asked for it – Anakin, grab me a glass and fill it with water from the sink… yes, right in that cupboard." Anakin hurried to obey her, watching with fascination as crystal clear water flowed from the tap at the turn of a knob. He scampered back into the living room, careful not to spill the half-full glass, and handed her the cup. Rhys smiled evilly as she slowly tipped it over above Tam's head, pouring a small stream of water on his forehead. Tam jerked awake as the cold water hit his head, sputtering as a bit of it fell on his nose.

"Hey! Master– water! Why'd you– it's cold!" Anakin giggled at the padawan trying to shake the water out of his hair. Tam looked up at them both with bleary eyes.

"We're going to be late if you take much longer, padawan," Rhys said sweetly as she set the now-empty cup on the table, "Hurry and change." Tam looked at her sideways, wiping water off his face with his palm as he stood up and stumbled into his bedroom. As she sat down, Anakin looked at her with equal parts of fear and admiration. They sat in silence for several minutes until Tam emerged in a new set of clothes.

"That wasn't necessary," he huffed grumpily, pulling on his boots from where they were tossed in the floor earlier, "You could have just woken me up like a normal person."

"We tried and it didn't work," Rhys replied as she flashed her padawan an innocent smile, "And besides, it's much more fun that way." Tam grumbled inaudibly under his breath, but followed his Master and Anakin into the elevator.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Rhys sat with her padawan in one of the waiting chairs outside the Council Chambers as they waited for the Council to finish testing Anakin. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon were standing at the balcony nearby, conversing quietly. There was tension in Obi-Wan's voice, belying the frustration he felt towards his Master.

"The boy will not pass the Council's tests, Master, and you know it," he said pointedly in an attempt to talk sense into his stubborn Master, "He is far too old."

"Anakin will become a Jedi… I promise you," came back the calm reply. Obi-Wan rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Don't defy the Council, Master, not again." Rhys cringed at the pained note in Obi-Wan's voice – her friend was always irritated with Qui-Gon because of his open disdain for the Council's decisions, often leading them to quarrels such as this one.

"I will do what I must, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon replied firmly, refusing to look at his padawan.

"Master, you could be sitting on the Council by now if you would just follow the Code. They will not go along with you this time!"

The rebuke was subtle, but still powerful, "You still have much to learn, my young apprentice." They stood silently together until the doors to the Council chambers opened. The two Masters entered first, their padawans trailing behind them respectfully. Anakin gave them a small smile as the four Jedi joined him in the center of the circular room.

"Correct you were, Qui-Gon," Yoda said, breaking the silence.

"His cells contain a high concentration of midichlorians," Windu stated, not looking entirely pleased that Qui-Gon had been right.

"The Force is strong with him," Ki-Adi Mundi added.

Rhys could feel the silent victory emanating from Qui-Gon, "He's to be trained, then?" The Councilmembers look to one another.

"No," Windu announced firmly, "He will not be trained."

"No?!" Qui-Gon asked incredulously. Rhys placed a comforting hand on Anakin's shoulders as tears began to form in his eyes. To her astonishment, Obi-Wan's lips flickered into a small smile before disappearing behind a solemn mask.

"He is too old," Windu explains, "There is already too much anger in him." Rhys had to keep herself from nodding in assent – as much as she believed that Anakin deserved to be trained, his emotions were too out of control. Even now, she could feel his resentment of the Council begin to grow.

"He is the Chosen One – you must see it!" Qui-Gon insisted.

"Clouded, this boy's future is. Masked by his youth," Yoda replied sagely.

Qui-Gon stepped forward and placed his hands on Anakin's shoulders, "I will train him then," he said assertively, "I take Anakin as my Padawan learner." Everyone else in the room reacted with various mixes of astonishment, doubt, and in Obi-Wan's case, barely masked horror.

"An apprentice you have, Qui-Gon," Yoda croaked, peering intently at him, "Impossible to take on a second."

"We forbid it," Windu interjected, eyes cold with disapproval. Rhys took a step backwards as Qui-Gon insisted that Obi-Wan was ready for the Trials. She felt Obi-Wan's embarrassment as Yoda rebuked him.

"Now is not the time for this," Windu ordered, stopping Qui-Gon in his tracks, "The Senate is voting for a new Supreme Chancellor. Queen Amidala is returning home, which will put pressure on the Federation and could widen the confrontation." Rhys tried to hide her surprise – clearly returning to Naboo had been her sister's idea.

"And draw out the Queen's attacker," Ki-Adi added.

"Go with the Queen to Naboo and discover the identity of the dark warrior. That is the clue we need to unravel this mystery of the Sith," Windu continued. Rhys' mind spun as Qui-Gon continued to debate Anakin's fate. Begrudgingly, Windu accepted that – for the time being – Anakin was his ward, but must not be trained.

"Protect the Queen, but do not intercede if it comes to war until we have the Senate's approval," he finished, "May the Force be with you." The four Jedi standing bowed and began to make their exit, Obi-Wan angrily leaving first.

"Stay, you will, Master Talik," Yoda announced, stopping Rhys in her tracks, "Another mission we have for you."

 _Another mission?_ She thought angrily _, I was assigned to this mission in the first place!_ Tam joined her in the center of the circle as the doors closed.

"Padawan Olo," Mace said, "You are dismissed." Rhys could feel her padawan's shock at being asked to leave his Master again, to go on yet another mission without her. **Go back to the apartment, Tam, I'll meet you there,** she said through their bond. He looked to his Master once, confusion and sadness flickering through their bond, before bowing respectfully and leaving the Council chambers.

As soon as he was gone, Rhys spoke, "With all respect, Masters, I do not believe that it is wise to take me from this mission. I–" Yoda cut her off with the raise of his gnarled hand.

"Taking you from this mission, we are not." Rhys gaped in surprise and relief at her former Master. "A new part to play, you have."

"With the Queen's attacker being drawn into the open, it could force him to go after her more directly," Mace explained, "We believe that the Queen will need additional security other than more guards."

"There's no way that she would agree to it," Rhys stated bluntly, "Not even if I suggested it."

"Agreed to it, she already has," Yoda informed her, "Employ a decoy for her return to Naboo, she will, to protect her identity." Rhys nodded in agreement.

"Her handmaiden has been acting as her decoy for much of the trip. It wouldn't be too hard to have her be the Queen when we return to Naboo."

"The handmaiden cannot protect herself or the true Queen while in disguise," Windu countered, "We believe that someone who is far more skilled in combat and better at imitation should pose as the Queen." Rhys couldn't believe what they were insinuating. "Because of your… relation… you also have the added benefit of appearing more like the true Queen."

"You want me to be her decoy? Have you forgotten that I am eight years older than my sister?" Rhys crossed her arms in discontent, "Yes, we do share a resemblance, but there are differences which could give us away!"

"Suppress your Force-signature, and that of the handmaidens, you can," Yoda reminded her, "Convey the words of the true Queen, you can, in a way that a handmaiden cannot."

Rhys sighed – she couldn't deny that the Council was right. While Sabé was a good mimic of Padmé, she wasn't a politician or a warrior. If she was to act as her sister's double, she could convey Padmé's words straight from her mind instead of having to rely on a coded system. "Very well… I will become the Queen's decoy."

"Good… Tell no one of your mission, you must. Rely on secrecy, the Queen's safety does." Rhys' face darkened.

"You would have me not tell my padawan?" she asked coolly, turning her gaze on the Councilmembers.

"Yes," Windu replied, staring straight at her, "Tell no one." She sighed, but bowed.

"Yes, Masters." As soon as she left the Council chambers, Rhys pulled out her comm link and commed Obi-Wan.

"Kenobi," came the reply.

"Obi-Wan, I need you to do me a favor," she asked, entering the elevator. She didn't like keeping secrets from her friend, but she had to for the good of the mission. "I need you to take Tam with you to Naboo."

"What?" he asked incredulously, "You aren't coming with us?"

"No," she tried to keep her voice as even as she could, "I've been reassigned to a new Shadow mission – it's an emergency and requires the deepest undercover. Tam can't come with me, but the Council still wants him on the mission." She tried to ease her conscience by telling herself that she was only telling half of a lie… it definitely was an emergency, and she was going undercover.

Obi-Wan was quiet for a little while. "I guess I won't be seeing you before we leave," he said finally.

"I guess this is it, then," she said softly, "Keep him safe for me, Obi."

"I will," he promised, then paused as he listened to something on the other end, "Qui-Gon said that we'll be leaving in an hour."

"You be safe too," she added, "Don't do anything rash." Obi-Wan chuckled.

"To be honest, I'd be more worried about Qui-Gon doing anything rash… or Anakin."

Rhys let out a soft laugh, then sobered, "May the Force be with you, Obi."

"And with you, Rhys."

* * *

"I can't believe that they're sending you on a Shadow mission!" Tam cried as his Master packed her travel bag. She had told him that the Council was sending her on an important undercover Shadow mission, one that couldn't wait.

"I didn't ask to be given another assignment, Tam," she reminded the sulking padawan.

"Yeah, but…" he trailed off as he sat down on her bed, "Can you at least tell me where you're going?"

Rhys gave her padawan an exasperated look, "You know I can't tell you anything about undercover Shadow missions – that defeats the purpose of it being undercover work." Tam sighed and laid down, staring at the ceiling.

"Are you going to tell Padmé?" he asked finally. Rhys huffed a sigh as she shoved the last of her clothes into her bag.

"Yes, I'll stop there before I pick up my new transport."

"Oh… you won't be using one of the Temple ships? What about the _Rover_?"

"No, I need something a bit more… nondescript… for this one." She walked out of her bedroom, Tam trailing behind. "Obi-Wan will be here in about an hour to take you to the Queen's ship. I want you to help him and Qui-Gon with Anakin as much as you can." She stopped in front of the door to turn back. Rhys placed her hands on her padawan's shoulders as she knelt to his level. "Stay safe, okay? I sense that this confrontation won't be resolved without a fight." Tam nodded his assent.

"I will, Master," he promised, forcing back tears.

Rhys' voice caught in her throat. Tam too young to be doing this on his own, much less without the Master that he trusted and knew. She felt guilty about leaving him for all of her Shadow mission, for leaving him now, and – worst of all – lying to him. She had never outright lied to him before… omitted information, yes, but never lied. Unlike most Jedi, Rhys had never had a problem with lying for the good of the mission – her Shadow missions were dependent on lying to maintain her cover. Lying to her padawan, however, was a completely different story.

"May the Force be with you, padawan."

"And with you, Master."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Rabé answered the door again when Rhys arrived at the Naboo apartments. Her eyes widened momentarily, then quickly ushered the Jedi in, ignoring all formality. The handmaiden directed her to the Queen's rooms where Sabé and Eirtaé were both trying to get Padmé's hair out of the elaborate headdress.

"Well, it's about time!" Eirtaé snapped as she finally got the headdress free, "We have to get you dressed?"

"Ah… dressed…" Rhys trailed off, looking at the large dress bag on the bed uneasily. The handmaidens unceremoniously herded her onto a low dressing stool and began pulling an elaborate dress out of the bag. Rhys tried not to gape as they helped her into multiple undergarments, chemises, slips, and – finally – the dark purple overdress. Both Padmé and Sabé offered their sympathies as Rabé began working on her hair, tightly coiffing it beneath a draping headdress. Rhys breathed a sigh of relief when the other handmaidens filed out to finish preparing their other bags while Padmé did her makeup.

"I'm sorry," Padmé apologized softly, "I didn't mean for this to happen."

Rhys smiled kindly at her sister, handing her the white face paint, "It's all right… besides, who doesn't want to be a Queen every now and then?" Padmé gave a small laugh as she picked up a brush.

"How did Tam take it?" she asked gently, smoothing the thick white paint on her sister's cheeks.

"He… was sad, and scared…" Rhys breathed, "He's never been in a full scale conflict before, and now having to do it without his Master…. I don't like lying to the one child I view higher than most adults." Padmé was taken aback by the sudden surge of emotion in her sister's voice when she talked about her padawan. Their relationship seemed to go far deeper than she had first assumed – clearly her sister viewed Tam as a son of sorts, and cared for him greatly.

They sat quietly for a little while as Padmé finished applying the red paint on Rhys' lips and cheeks. The handmaidens filed back in and Eirtaé began mercilessly drilling the new decoy on the proper procedures and formalities that the Queen followed. Rhys was saved by Panaka telling them that the ship was ready for them.

"Thank you, Captain," she said, drawing herself up regally, "Take us to the ship."

* * *

"It's not disrespect, Master, it's the truth!"

Tam stood off a ways from Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon as they talked, making sure to keep an eye on Anakin and Artoo in the process. He could feel the tension between the Master and padawan ever since they picked him up from the apartment – clearly they had been arguing since that fateful Council session.

"From your point of view…" Qui-Gon trailed off. Obi-Wan seemed to get more and more irritated by the second.

"The boy is dangerous – they all sense it! Why can't you?"

Qui-Gon apparently had heard enough of his apprentice's defiance, abruptly turning towards Obi-Wan with a steely glint on his eye. "His fate is uncertain, not dangerous. The Council will decide Anakin's future – that should be enough for you. Now get on board!" Obi-Wan sent his Master one last entreating look, then stormed off to the Nubian ship. Tam followed behind him, remembering his Master's orders to stay near Obi-Wan.

He followed Obi-Wan into the main hold, sitting silently beside the fuming padawan. He reached out into the Force to offer comfort, but retracted as soon as he felt a glimmer of a familiar presence. It seemed to approach the landing pad, then abruptly cut off as it vanished.

* * *

Rhys steeled herself and masked her Force-signature as she led the procession from the transport onto the landing pad. Her handmaidens were arranged protectively behind her, with a column of guards behind them. The silver Nubian ship was alone on the landing pad as the pilots prepared it for takeoff. She could sense Tam and Obi-Wan already in the ship, while Qui-Gon and Anakin stood outside to greet them.

"Your Highness, it is our pleasure to continue to serve and protect you," Qui-Gon said with a slight bow as she approached him.

"I welcome your help," Rhys said in the cultured voice of Queen Amidala, relaying the words straight from Padmé's thoughts. She had practiced with her sister to teach her how to hold a thought or feeling at the front of her mind so that she could easily read it. "Senator Palpatine fears the Federation means to destroy me."

"I promise you, I will not let that happen," Qui-Gon promised, stepping aside as she and her retinue entered the ship. Rhys led the way to the makeshift throne room and sat formally upon the chair, the handmaidens fanning out to their positions around the room. As soon as they took off, the three Jedi, Panaka and Jar-Jar entered the throne room.

Rhys was surprised to feel suppressed anger emanating from Obi-Wan that was directed towards both Qui-Gon and Anakin. Tam stood near him, trying his best to soothe the irate padawan, but barely making a dent. Rhys resisted a smile at her sweet, empathetic, innocent padawan… about to fight an army without the knowledge of having his Master by his side to protect him, to help him. She instantly sobered at the thought.

"The moment we land, the Federation will arrest you and force you to sign the treaty," Captain Panaka said, ever the pessimist against her. _Then again_ , Rhys mused internally, _I suppose it's his job to worry about the Queen._

"I agree," Qui-Gon interjected, "I'm not sure what you hope to accomplish by this."

Rhys felt Padmé bristle at the Jedi's comments and drew herself up to an imposing height to follow through with the plan. "I'm going to take back what's ours," she stated regally.

"There are only twelve of us, Your Highness. We have no army," Panaka reminded.

"I cannot fight a war for you, Your Highness, only protect you." Rhys' eyes narrowed at their words. They didn't think that the Queen was capable enough of constructing a brilliant plan (which she had), had the strength to follow through (she most definitely did), or the willpower to overpower any obstacle in her way (if they only knew…). With Padmé's consent, Rhys began to explain her plan.

"Jar-Jar Binks," she said simply. The Gungan looked around, thoroughly puzzled.

"Mesa, Your Highness?"

"Yes," she gave an amused smile, "I need your help." She then proceeded her plan to have Jar-Jar lead them to Otoh Gunga and plead with the Bosses to aid them with their army. Surprise registered on Qui-Gon and Panaka's face – they clearly didn't expect the Queen to have a plan ready. After she had laid out the details of her plan, Rhys dismissed them all to collect herself and converse with Padmé and the handmaidens.

"I can't believe that worked," Rabé breathed. Both Padmé and Rhys raised an eyebrow at her in tandem.

"Should we be offended, sister?" Rhys asked, eyes twinkling. Padmé just rolled her eyes in response.

* * *

Obi-Wan stood silently as the Queen explained her plan to the assembled guards and Jedi. He had to admit, it was a well-conceived plan, if a little reckless. He didn't know how he felt about relying on the Gungans for help – if Jar-Jar provided an ample representation of his kin they were certainly doomed.

He turned his attention to Queen Amidala as she continued speaking. Her face beneath the white face paint was set in determination, adding conviction to her words. The young Queen seemed older then when they had escaped Naboo – clearly this trial was aging her far more than she let on.

When the Queen dismissed them, Obi-Wan couldn't help but reaching out into the Force, brushing against her signature. For a moment, he thought that he felt something eerily familiar, but owed the sense to the growing disturbance in the Force he had been sensing since the mission began.

* * *

Darth Sidious sat at his ornately carved desk in his private rooms overlooking the busy streets of Coruscant. His schemes and machinations were bearing their twisted fruits right on schedule: the Queen would soon be under his control, Jinn and Kenobi would be dead, and the office of Chancellor would be his.

Maul would have no trouble dispatching Kenobi and Jinn – they were of no use to him and fated to die. The Zabrak apprentice would easily subdue the Queen and force her to sign the treaty, relinquishing control of the planet to the Trade Federation, and thereby himself. Sidious was annoyed that Talik hadn't remained as the Queen's bodyguard, but her padawan had, making it much easier to control her. Even he could tell the Jedi had strong feelings for the boy.

There was, however, the young Skywalker boy to consider. He was far more powerful than any other Force-sensitive Sidious had ever before seen – even more than Rhys Talik. The boy's emotions were turbulent and powerful, making him the perfect candidate for a Sith once he had been trained to use them. Talik may be a potential apprentice, but Skywalker would be the doom of the Jedi.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

 **Hello everyone, SpeechBubbleMe here! Thank you, thank you, thank you for the many reviews! Small docket today, and here it is:**

 **Robinbird79 \- Yes, I agree. Although Palpatine is a powerful Sith Lord, he is not all-powerful. Hope you like this one!**

 **ColdOnePaul \- I'm definitely looking forward to the interim between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones because it means that I get more fun characters to play with! Mwah ha ha... But really though, the Clone Wars provides so many awesome opportunities!**

 **moreissuesthanvogue \- Yeah, I know I'm a bit of a slacker as far as updates are concerned, but you'll get your wish in either this chapter or the next! Thanks a bunch!**

 **.2016 \- Thanks for the review!**

 **CardiacCane \- I think my middle name might be "deviation", actually... but yeah, I toyed with the idea of leaving him behind. Fortunately, he decided to come along :)**

 **Disclaimer: *waving hands around like a derp* I don't own Star Wars! As always, please, please, please review!**

* * *

Rhys understood why Padmé was such good friends with her handmaidens – not only were they loyal, but weren't afraid to speak their minds and offer advice in private to the young Queen. Eirtaé was the proper one, always reminding the others to act like the royal handmaidens they were rather than a bunch on giggling girls. The blonde handmaiden seemed to take a strange delight in lecturing people about the proper procedures that befell the Queen. Sabé was the realist, offering comfort and advice – as the Queen's previous decoy, she knew all about the pressures that came with being the Queen, if only for a few moments at a time. Rabé was gifted especially with bringing a smile to Padmé's lips, even when no one else could.

However, she began to like them far less when Sabé reminded them that they would be landing soon, and Eirtaé began pulling out several dress bags for them to change into. Rhys tried to protest as the girls helped her into the Queen's "Battle Dress" and headdress. This one wasn't nearly as heavy as the first and was far less elaborate. It was made out of red and black blast-dampening fabric, paired with a simpler headdress and the traditional makeup. Rhys was slightly happier when Sabé quickly altered it to have two hidden pockets for her lightsabers, should she need them. The four handmaidens were in their own battle attire as well – simple tunics without hoods that showed their identical looped buns. Each handmaiden also had their own blaster attached to their belts.

By the time she had finished changing, they were landing on Naboo. Rhys was surprised to see that the blockade was gone – only a single droid control ship remained. As soon as they landed in the swamps of Naboo, she sent Jar-Jar to the Gungan city to check it out first. While they waited for the Gungan to return, she and the others waited outside the ship by the banks of the lake.

"The Jedi don't look very happy about the plan, milady," Sabé said under her breath, nodding in the direction of the three figures standing away from the main group of pilots. Rhys' mouth twisted into a smile.

"No, they don't," she replied softly. The handmaiden's observations had been correct – neither the Master nor the padawans seemed pleased with the situation. Obi-Wan had clearly been fighting with Qui-Gon again, presumably about Anakin and his Master's blatant disregard for the Council's decisions. The tension was palpable between them as they stood apart, separated even in the Force. Her own padawan was gravitating near Anakin and Artoo, showing the younger boy a holo-schematic of the Jedi Temple that he had saved on his datapad.

Rhys couldn't repress her smile at her social padawan as he patiently described he workings of the Temple to Anakin, even drawing a few interested looks from the assembled pilots around him. His patience had definitely not come from any of her teachings – even after years of forced patience from her Master, Rhys still struggled with the idea of waiting for events to take place rather than taking the initiative and going to them. _He will be a great Master one day,_ she mused thoughtfully.

Nearly an hour later, Jar-Jar still hadn't returned. Rhys had half a mind to tear off her headdress and swim down to Otoh Gunga herself – Gungans or no Gungans. She could sense the despair coming from the handmaidens beside her. Sabé and Rabé stood together, quietly conversing while Eirtaé and Padmé stood stoically beside the decoy Queen. Rhys now understood Padmé's frustration: she was the Queen, elected to protect her people, and was now stood hiding in the swamps in a wild bid for their freedom. The tension in the Force was maddening, heightening everyone's fears and making it much more difficult to mask her Force-signature.

Some of the tension was relieved when Obi-Wan finally went over to talk to his Master. Rhys couldn't hear what they were saying, but the bad feelings between them lessened as Qui-Gon placed a hand on his apprentice's shoulders. Their moment was broken by the sudden appearance of Jar-Jar, shaking off water as he emerged from the lake. The two older Jedi and Panaka moved closer to hear what the Gungan had to report.

"Dare-sa nobody dare!" he exclaimed, "All gone… some kinda fight, mesa tink." Rhys saw Padmé's face fall. Without the Gungans, it would be nearly impossible for her plan to work.

"Do you think they were taken to the camps?" Panaka asked, crossing his arms.

"More likely they were wiped out," Obi-Wan commented to Jar-Jar's dismay.

"Mesa no tink so," Jar-Jar was adamant that his people were still alive. Rhys couldn't blame him for wanting to believe that the Gungans wouldn't go down without a fight, but if the city was abandoned, there could be no other way. "Gungan hiden. When in trouble, go to sacred place. Mackineeks no find dem dare."

 _Well, that was a surprise,_ Rhys thought as she felt Padmé's hope and that of her handmaidens. Perhaps the Gungans abandoned their city to hide in the swamps. There would be enough other life forms to hide their presence from the scanners, but it would have to be well hidden.

"Do you know where they are?" Qui-Gon asked. Jar-Jar hurriedly nodded his assent and began leading them into the swamps. The Gungan led the way, closely followed by the Jedi, the Queen, her handmaidens, and their escort.

Rhys cursed Eirtaé under her breath for forcing her into the useless shoes that she claimed went with the battle dress. She was, however, grateful that she hadn't been stuffed into heels. Because she was taller than her sister, any height difference would be taken away of she wore flats while the handmaidens wore taller shoes. This did cause a bit of a problem for walking purposes – the thick roots and soft ground made it difficult to stay balanced, especially with the Queen's heavy headdress.

 _These Sith-cursed shoes!_ Rhys exclaimed mentally, cursing the situation. She stared daggers at the back of Qui-Gon's head directly in front of her. _Stupid dress… stupid shoes… was there no way for the Queen to have_ some _practical things in her Wardrobe?_ Lost in thought, she didn't realize that her foot was caught on the side of a protruding root and started to fall over. Her Jedi reflexes were next to useless when caught by surprise. As she was about to face plant inches away from the mud, a hand pulled her up.

"Are you all right, Your Highness?"

Not for the first time that day, Rhys found herself cursing Obi-Wan Kenobi. He looked at her in concern as he helped her regain her footing. Once she was standing on stable ground, Rhys drew herself up regally.

"Thank you, Padawan Kenobi," she said formally, brushing him off with a nod. He stared at her for a moment, somehow taken aback, then composed himself.

"Of course, Your Highness," he replied, giving a slight bow. Rhys hurriedly turned around to keep up with the pace, ignoring all thoughts of what had just happened. _It's okay, we haven't been found out…. He couldn't have known…. Stupid, stupid, stupid…_

* * *

Obi-Wan was walking behind the Queen, protecting her flank as he had been instructed by Qui-Gon. He couldn't help but wince internally every time she or one of her handmaidens stumbled over the thick roots and unsteady ground in their impractical shoes. In all other instance when he had seen the Queen, she had exuded a powerful, confident grace. Now it was closer to barely masked embarrassment spurned onward by sheer willpower. He had to admit, her strength of will was admirable, but she would eventually fall.

In a matter of minutes, Obi-Wan's prediction came true: the Queen's shoe became caught on a larger root, causing her to lose her balance. Thankfully, his quick reflexes allowed him to catch hold of her arm before she fell into the mud.

"Are you all right, Your Highness?" he asked as the Queen righted herself and held her head high. She seemed to be more embarrassed about the fact that he had helped her rather than that she had fallen.

"Thank you, Padawan Kenobi," she replied formally, giving a small nod. Obi-Wan stared at her white painted face for a moment, realizing that this was the first time he had ever been this close to her. The face paint obscured her facial features, but there was something familiar about the dark brown eyes-

Obi-Wan took a step back – he was not going to let this happen again! Rhys often teased him that he let his heart be taken too easily, and she was right. First it was his fellow Jedi and friend Siri Tachi, then Satine Kyrze. Obi-Wan kicked himself mentally as memories began to filter through his mind, distracting him. He shook them off and gave a slight bow.

"Of course, Your Highness." To his relief, the Queen quickly turned around and began marching again to keep up with the pace, he handmaidens and other guards following behind her. Obi-Wan once again took his place on her flank.

As they continued to walk through the thick foliage, Obi-Wan's thoughts turned to his missing friend. _Rhys would be teasing me about the Queen right about now,_ he mused, _And I know exactly what she would say. "Attachment, a Jedi has not," is exactly what she would tell me… over and over again._ Obi-Wan as he caught a glimpse of Jar-Jar and Qui-Gon ahead of him, clearing the way. _This is going to be a long mission…_

* * *

A while later, Jar-Jar stopped in the middle of a clearing, the rest of the group coming to a halt behind him. The Gungan made a strange chattering noise, then – out of nowhere – several Gungan troops mounted on kaadus emerged from the brush.

"Heyo-dalee, Cap'n Tarpals," Jar-Jar greeted the front Gungan. Tarpals seemed more than annoyed with the reappearance of the clumsy Gungan.

"Binks! Noah gain!"

"We comen to see da boss," Jar-Jar attempted to explain, but the Captain levelled his spear at him.

"Ouch time, Binks… Ouch time for all-n youse!" he declared. _That doesn't sound good,_ Rhys thought as the Gungans turned and began heading back into the brush. Jar-Jar moaned something unintelligible and followed after the retreating kaadus. In a matter of minutes, the mounted Gungans led the group to a clearing scattered with the ruins of a grand temple.

The Gungans milling about the clearing made a path, gazing at their visitors with blatant suspicion. Rhys knew that relations between the Naboo and the Gungans had always been rocky – there had only bee about a hundred years of relative peace since the last major war. While she didn't entirely believe that Padmé's plan to unite the Naboo and the Gungans, Rhys had to admit that if she could pull it off they would definitely have a chance at retaking Theed. They soon stopped before a large carved head that had several official-looking Gungans sitting on top of it.

"Queen Amidala of da Naboo, Your Honor," Tarpals announced as they approached the head. Boss Nass narrowed his eyes as Rhys stepped forward regally.

"I am Queen Amidala of the Naboo," she stated, "I come before you in peace."

The Boss did not look pleased, "Naboo biggen. Yousa bringen da Mackineeks… Yousa all bombad. Yousa all die-n, mesa tink." Rhys faced resolutely ahead as she sensed the pilots and guards behind her grow nervous at the Boss' declaration.

"We wish to form an alliance-" Too late, Rhys sensed Padmé step forward.

"Your Honor," she interrupted. Rhys mentally cursed her reckless sister and prayed that whatever scheme she had would work.

"Whosa dis?" Boss Nass exclaimed as Padmé moved in front of the group. _Please don't do anything stupid to reveal yourself or get us killed, please don't reveal yourself, please, please, please…_ Rhys pled mentally.

"I am Queen Amidala."

 _Kriff_.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

 **Hello everyone! Thanks for the new reviews and followers! No docket today so straight to the disclaimer: Do I own Star Wars? No... no I do not.**

 **Reviews are appreciated!**

* * *

As soon as Padmé spoke, Rhys knew that the Lothcat was out of the bag. _Did I get squished into this kriffing dress and dolled up for nothing?_

"This is my decoy… my protection," Padmé turned to smile quickly at Rhys, "My loyal bodyguard… and my sister."

Rhys looked around her to gauge everyone's reactions. The handmaidens seemed to be slightly shocked that Padmé would do such a thing, but they hid it well. Panaka was not as skilled at hiding his displeasure. Qui-Gon, predictably, returned a knowing look in her direction, while Anakin, Tam, and Obi-Wan were stunned. Rhys could feel her padawan's emotions tearing through their connection, but she didn't yet open their mental bond. There would be plenty of time for explanations later.

"I am sorry for my deception, but under the circumstances it became necessary to protect myself," Padmé continued, "Although we don't always agree, Your Honor, our two great societies have always lived in peace until now. The Trade Federation has destroyed all that we have worked so hard to build. You are in hiding, my people in camps. If we do not act quickly, all will be lost forever. I ask you to help us… no, I beg you to help us." With that, the young Queen dropped to knees in supplication to the Gungan above her.

Rhys understood now what Padmé was doing – it was brilliant. By prostrating herself before them, Padmé was letting the Bosses know where the power lay between them. She was offering her respect to the Gungans, and now it was left to them to accept it.

"We are your humble servants… our fate is in your hands." The rest of the company dropped to their knees, joining the Queen in her supplication. Rhys knelt beside Padmé, silently hoping that her sister's plan would work. To her surprise, Boss Nass began to laugh uproariously.

"Yousa no tinken yousa greater den da Gungans?" he boomed, "Mesa lika dis. Maybe wesa bein friends." With that, the Bosses descended from their perch. Several other Gungans offered to go back to the ship and retrieve the supplies.

"That was reckless and you know it," Rhys said under her breath to her sister before she was led away by Panaka to speak with Boss Nass. Padmé just flashed her a reassuring smile in response as she followed the Captain to a hastily constructed war room. Rhys had to resist the urge to rub at her temples and smear her makeup.

"Master?" Rhys unmasked her Force-signature as she turned to face her padawan. He was clearly upset, but trying to remain strong in front of everyone. Rhys knelt before him and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"It was not my choice to lie to you, Tam," she said, trying to keep her voice calm, "But it was the best way. This was as much of a test for you as it was for me." He nodded quickly before enveloping his Master in a hug. They stayed like that for several moments until someone behind them cleared their throat, causing them to break apart. Rhys turned to see Obi-Wan standing alone, smiling a bit sheepishly.

"So… uh…" he started, clearing his throat again, "When you were about to face plant in the mud back there… and I-"

Rhys stopped him with a hand, "Not another word, Kenobi, if you value your life." Obi-Wan opened his mouth to say something, then thought better of it and remained silent.

"Come on, Tam," she said as she briskly turned in the direction of Padmé and Captain Panaka, "We have an attack to plan."

* * *

Rhys stood solemnly beside her sister as Padmé finalized the last of her battle plans. She had to admit, it was a good plan, but not without risk. She would be playing the role of decoy, hopefully distracting from the true Queen long enough for Padmé to lead the charge against the Viceroy. A noise drew her attention – Anakin was running back from the sentry's post, hopefully with good news.

"They're here!" he announced, running up to the command table as several occupied speeders came into view. Captain Panaka was the first to get off, followed by a dozen or so guards and pilots.

"What's the situation?" Padmé asked as they joined the Gungan Generals, Bosses, the four Jedi, and the handmaidens at the command table.

"Almost everyone's in camps," he reported, "A few hundred police and guards have formed an underground movement. I brought as many of the leaders as I could. The Federation's army is also much larger than we thought, and much stronger." He turned directly to the young Queen, his doubt clear on his face, "Your Highness, this is a battle I do not think we can win."

Rhys smiled as Padmé drew herself up in response to his words. "The battle is a diversion," she said pointedly, turning her attention to the projected holo-map, "The Gungans must draw the droid army away from the city. We can enter the city using the secret passages on the waterfall side. Once we get to the main entrance, Captain Panaka will create a diversion so that we can enter the palace and capture the Viceroy. Without the Viceroy, they will be lost and confused," Padmé turned to her sister, "What do you think, Master Jedi?"

Rhys looked at the holo-map with interest. "It is a good plan, but the Viceroy will be well guarded. I don't know how long our decoy ruse will hold up once we're in the palace."

"The difficulty's getting into the throne room," Panaka stated, "Once we're inside, we shouldn't have a problem."

Qui-Gon looked up from the holo-map, "There is a possibility with this diversion many Gungans will be killed."

Boss Nass drew himself up proudly and pressed a fist to his chest, "Wesa ready to do our-san part!" he declared. Jar-Jar didn't look nearly as confident beside him.

"We have a plan which should immobilize the droid army," Padmé explained, looking around the table, "We will send what pilots we have to knock out the droid control ship which is orbiting the planet. If we can get past their ray shields, we can sever communication and their droids will be helpless."

Qui-Gon nodded in agreement, "A well-conceived plan. However, there's great risk. The weapons on your fighters may not penetrate the shields on the control ship."

"And there's an even bigger danger," Obi-Wan chimed in, "If the Viceroy escapes, Your Highness, he will return with another droid army."

"That is why we must not fail to get to the Viceroy," Rhys shot back, "Everything depends on it." And with that, the war council broke apart – the Gungans to finalize their war preparations, the Naboo to greet those that had escaped from the camps, and the Jedi to an undisturbed corner. Rhys steadied her headdress as she sat down upon a makeshift chair, her padawan standing near her.

"What will we be doing during the battle, Master?" he asked, fiddling with a piece of long grass absently.

"I shall be acting as the Queen while you act as my protector," she replied. Tam gave a wry smile.

"I'm assuming you actually don't need protection, Master?" Rhys shook her head.

"Not usually, no, but a Queen generally doesn't have or know how to use a pair of lightsabers," she said pointedly. Tam's grin grew wider as he patted his lightsabers, securely attached to his belt. His Master rolled her eyes in response.

"I want you to stay near me during the battle, Tam, understood?" The padawan quickly nodded his assent. "If anything does happen, I don't want us to be separated."

"Yes, Master." They sat quietly for a moment, observing the Gungan Generals marshal their troops into an orderly looking rank and file. For such an ungainly species, the Gungan warriors moved with trained grace as they went through sword movements and shooting positions. Anakin was also watching the Gungans come together, staring at them with obvious wonder. Rhys couldn't help but smile when she noticed her padawan doing the same.

 _Let him have a moment to be a child_ , she thought as she stood up and moved away. Tam noticed her leaving and made to follow. Rhys waved him off, motioning for him to go back to where he was. The boy shrugged his shoulders and sat in the now unoccupied chair.

"You know, I never thought that I'd ever see you in a dress, Rhys." Rhys rolled her eyes and turned to face Obi-Wan where he stood, arms crossed casually.

"This doesn't count," she hissed defensively, "It's for a mission, and it should be known that I didn't do it willingly!" Obi-Wan raised his hands defensively, wisely saying nothing else. They stood in together in companionable silence until Obi-Wan nodded his head in the direction of the true Queen accompanied by Panaka.

"So… your sister is the Queen?" he asked hesitantly. Rhys gave a small smile at her friend's continued confusion.

"Yes, Padmé is my sister," she replied lightly, "She's certainly grown up." Obi-Wan's eyes widened in further awe as he realized that the six-year-old girl that he had met on Naboo eight years previously had become the Queen of her planet.

"Padmé?" He took a second look at the young Queen of Naboo, " _Little_ Padmé? How did that happen?" Rhys let out a soft chuckle.

"Did you expect her to stay a child forever, Obi-Wan?" she teased. Obi-Wan's face reddened as he mumbled something unintelligible. "To be fair, I did encourage her to go into public service," she continued, glancing over at her sister, "I just didn't expect her to become so immersed in it at such a young age. She's not the youngest Queen of Naboo, but I suspect that she couldn't possibly have been prepared for all of this."

"She's proving to be a capable ruler," Obi-Wan observed, "For one so young."

"My only regret is that she never had the childhood my family wished for her," Rhys lamented, "Now she'll never get to enjoy having a normal life like Sola – no mornings on the lake with friends, no school trips to the capitol… no dreams to make into reality."

"Padmé did have you as a rather large role model in her life," he reminded her. Rhys rolled her eyes and faced resolutely forward.

"Yes, but I'm not exactly the best of role models for her to have," she said shortly, "Jedi aren't exactly known to lead normal lives. Even the younglings in the Temple don't know what it is to live outside of the Jedi Order, but the Code prevents them from knowing any different!"

Obi-Wan was silent for a moment after her outburst, staring at her with concern written on his face. "You've thought about this for a while, haven't you?" Rhys opened her mouth to say something, but was saved by the timely appearance of one of the pilots.

"Master Jedi, we're preparing to leave," the pilot said with a quick bow.

"We'll be along shortly," Rhys answered, "Thank you, pilot." The pilot gave another bow and ran to join the rest of the group across the clearing. Rhys turned back to Obi-Wan.

"As much as I would like to illuminate you on my interpretation and grievances with the Code right now, we do have more important things to do," she said sharply, "Now if you'll excuse me, I must find my padawan." As she whirled away from him, Obi-Wan caught her wrist, stopping her from leaving.

"I'm sorry," he apologized quickly, "I didn't mean to upset you." Obi-Wan released his hold on her arm, his face a picture of repentance.

"And I'm sorry for snapping at you," she said softly, placing a hand on his shoulder, "May the Force be with you, Obi-Wan."

Rhys walked away before she could hear his reply.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

 **Hiya everyone! Thank you so much for your reviews! Disclaimer: Yeah... I don't own Star Wars, but that doesn't stop me from loving it to death!**

* * *

Not for the first time that day, Rhys cursed her elaborate dress and dainty shoes vehemently as she followed Panaka through the tunnels. While the hidden tunnels weren't completely filthy, neither were they easy to traverse. Slippery moss and scattered pebbles made climbing up the steep inclines very difficult – especially in Rhys' impractical shoes.

Rhys thanked the Force when they finally emerged from the tunnels into the central plaza of Theed that was closest to the main hangar. If all went according to plan, they would storm the hangar, use their ships to destroy the droid control ship, and evade the battle droids in the palace long enough to capture the Viceroy. Rhys stood by as Padmé signaled to the other group of guards on the far side of the plaza with a red laser light. While they waited for the other group to signal back, Rhys overheard Qui-Gon instruct Anakin to find a hiding place when they got to the hangar.

"Master?" she turned her head slightly to see her apprentice standing next to her. Tam's hands rested lightly on the hilts of his lightsabers, loosely attached to his belt.

"Just stay by me, Tam," she reminded him gently, sending a wave of soothing calm through their bond. He was understandably nervous – no amount of training could possibly prepare a twelve-year-old boy for a full scale battle. He relaxed visibly and nodded his assent, still keeping his hands on his lightsaber hilts. The signal returned from the other group, and they began their distraction, drawing all of the droids in the plaza away from the hangar. Padmé's group made their run to the hangar, the three Jedi igniting their lightsabers to block any stray blaster bolts.

Under fire from more battle droids, the group hurried to find cover in the hangar while the Jedi deflected numerous blaster shots. Rhys felt pride in her apprentice as he flawlessly defected countless blasts with his sabers from where he stood by her side. For her own part, Rhys tried to shoot as many droids as she could. She wasn't an expert marksman, but was skilled enough to put a dent in the number of droids coming after them.

"Get to your ships!" Padmé cried, signaling to her pilots. Rhys was barely aware of the Starfighters leaving the hangars as blaster bolts continued to rain around them. Briefly, she noticed that Anakin had taken refuge in an empty fighter. Luckily, the second group arrived and quickly overwhelmed the remaining battle droids. Once the hangar was free of droids, the two groups congregated in the center of the platform.

"My guess is the Viceroy is in the throne room," Padmé said, looking to her sister.

"I agree," Rhys replied. The other Jedi nodded their assent, following them to the exit and passing the fighter where Anakin was hiding.

"Hey! Wait for me!" he cried, popping his head out of the cockpit. Qui-Gon fixed him with a stern look.

"No, Ani, you stay there," the older Jedi said brusquely, "Stay right where you are."

"But I-"

"Stay in that cockpit," Qui-Gon ordered. The boy's face fell as he sat back down in the cockpit, sullenly watching the group head for the exit. As they were about to go through the door, Rhys felt a disturbance in the Force approach. Her padawan looked questioningly in her direction and she shook her head imperceptively. The door opened, revealing the robed assassin that had followed them to Tatooine. The assassin removed his hooded cloak - revealing a red and black tattooed male Zabrak – and ignited his double-bladed crimson lightsaber. The rest of the group backed away as Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan stepped forward, casting their cloaks aside.

"We'll handle this," Qui-Gon announced as they advanced, keeping their gaze focused on the Sith. As the Jedi pulled away from the group, six destroyer rolled in from the far end of the hangar. _Sithspit_ , Rhys thought as the droidekas began firing upon the Naboo. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon were clearly occupied by the Sith warrior, and she couldn't expose herself now by drawing her lightsabers…

Suddenly, shots appeared above her head, wiping out several of the droids. The remaining droidekas looked around for the source of the shot, but moments later more of them were gunned down. Rhys smiled as she saw the advancing Naboo fighter – clearly, Anakin had found out how to work the controls. Once the droids were destroyed, Panaka led the way into the palace, finding cover behind the large pillars that lined the hallway.

As they struggled to gain ground against the battle droids, Rhys' thoughts kept going back to Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. The Sith was obviously skilled from what she had seen, and had obviously been well-trained. While Obi-Wan was considered one of the best swordsmen among his age-mates, even he seemed to be outmatched. Qui-Gon was also skilled, but the older Jedi was nearing the age of sixty and tired quickly. Her thoughts were interrupted by a barrage of shots coming from the other end of the hallway.

"We don't have time for this, Captain," Padmé pronounced, turning to Panaka. The captain nodded, signaling for several other guards to accompany them as he blasted a hole in a nearby window. Rhys, Tam, and Eirtaé stayed behind with the remaining guards to fight their way to the throne room. The fighting seemed to go on without end, but the Naboo were gaining ground against the droids. In a matter of minutes, they had reached the stairs and ascended to the next floor.

"Are you all right?" Rhys asked her padawan under her breath as they climbed the stairs. Tam grinned as he rolled his right shoulder experimentally.

"This much deflecting is going to make my shoulders sore tomorrow."

Rhys couldn't help but smile at her padawan's remark. She was about to say something when Eirtaé, standing in front of her, was thrown back into the decoy Queen with a large burn mark scoring the side of her shoulder. Tamai jumped up to defend his Master and the injured handmaiden.

"Eirtaé!" Rhys cried, reaching out with the Force to discover the extent of her injuries. Thankfully, it was only a surface wound, but surely painful. The blonde handmaiden waved her off as she sat back up amidst the firefight around her.

"I'm all right, milady," she reassured her, taking her blaster into her other hand, "I suppose I'll just have to shoot left-handed for now." Eirtaé took her place directly behind the decoy Queen as the fight went on around them.

As they neared the closed entrance to the throne room, Rhys sensed danger in the room within. When all of the droids were destroyed, Rhys ordered one of the guards to open the door to the throne room, revealing the Viceroy standing in front of a captured Padmé.

"Your occupation here has ended, Viceroy!" she exclaimed, imitating the voice of Queen Amidala. Nute Gunray turned to her in outrage, directing several droids towards her.

"After her!" he exclaimed angrily, "This one is a decoy!" Rhys bit back a smile as the droids began following her and her guards through the long hallway.

"Go back through the main hallway, Lieutenant," Rhys instructed the guard by her side, ducking behind a pillar for momentary cover, "My padawan and I can handle this." The Lieutenant was stunned for several seconds – apparently forgetting that the decoy Queen was, in fact, a Jedi – before directing his troops back towards the main hallway. Rhys pulled out her twin sabers from their hidden pockets, her face lighting up in a feral smile. Without another word, she dashed out into plain sight directly in front of the droids.

"Stop shooting!" the droid in charge shouted to its compatriots, "It's the Queen – the Viceroy wants her alive!" The cluster of battle droids stood speechless as she ignited her violet lightsabers with a hiss.

"Uh-oh…"

"Roger, roger!"

In a matter of seconds, the droids were reduced to smoking heaps of metal scattered throughout the hallway. Master and padawan shared a grin as they left the carnage behind to regroup with the guards.

 _NOOOOOOOOOOO!_

Rhys was almost brought to her knees with the intensity of the shout through the Force, its pain ripping through her mind. Her face paled as she recognized the sound - it was Obi-Wan, she was sure of it. Pain, fear, and anger all mingled together to form an agonized cry in the Force. Tam looked to her uncertainly, fear written across his face.

"I must go help Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon," Rhys said, placing a hand on her padawan's shoulder to offer some comfort, "I want you to protect Padmé and the others, understand?"

"Yes, Master," he replied solemnly before racing off in the direction of the throne room. Rhys watched her apprentice's retreating figure for a moment before setting to finding the origin of the shout.

 _Hold on, Obi-Wan…_ she thought, _I'm coming…_

* * *

Obi-Wan felt like part of him died when he saw the red blade go through his Master's chest. His vision became red as Qui-Gon fell limp to the ground, his lightsaber useless by his side. The Zabrak stalked over to the energy field separating them and began to pace hungrily.

In a rage, Obi-Wan let out a scream as the pulsing electron gate between them disappeared and attacked the Sith. His only thought was to kill the Sith that had murdered his Master as they fought furiously, using the Force to fling objects as they battled. Obi-Wan eventually gained the upper hand, slicing the Zabrak's blade in half and forcing the Sith to toss away his now useless half. For a moment, his emotions controlled his movements, attacking in fury. Obi-Wan maneuvered into a blade lock, his blue blade pushing against the red menacingly. Blind in his anger, the Sith caught him off guard and kicked him into the shaft of the melting pit. Obi-Wan barely managed to catch hold of a small nozzle on the side before the Sith kicked his lightsaber to plummet into the shaft.

As he hung there, Obi-Wan's heart sunk in shame as he realized what he had done. For a moment in his anger, he had given in to the Dark side of the Force, using his hate, pain, and fear to lash out blindly. _Qui-Gon would have been disappointed_ , he thought dismally, glancing up at the malicious face of the Zabrak above. _I've failed… and now there's nothing to stop him from killing the Queen and everyone else…_ In a moment of clarity, Obi-Wan sensed a presence hurrying towards them.

 _Hold on, Obi-Wan… I'm coming…_

Obi-Wan gathered his strength for one final attempt. Remembering his Master's lightsaber, he jumped up from the nozzle and pulled it to his hand, igniting it when the Zabrak tried to turn around. Mindlessly, he swung, fully expecting to see a crimson blade protruding from his chest at any second. To his surprise, nothing came. Instead, he saw the two halves of the Zabrak Sith falling into the melting pit below. Obi-Wan was stunned for a moment, then rushed to Qui-Gon's side.

"Master!" he cried, placing a hand underneath Qui-Gon's head.

"It's too late… it's…" Qui-Gon managed to stammer out breathlessly.

"No!" his voice was choked with emotion. Qui-Gon – though they often had their differences – was the closest thing to a father he had ever had. He was more than a father, he was his Master.

"Obi-Wan, promise… promise me you'll train the boy…" Qui-Gon trailed off. Obi-Wan nodded furiously, tears beginning to drip down his cheeks.

"Yes, Master, I promise," he vowed.

"He is the Chosen One," Qui-Gon insisted, his strength beginning to fail, "He will… bring balance…. Train him!"

* * *

When Rhys ran into the power generator's melting pit, she saw Obi-Wan hunched over Qui-Gon's inert body. Her heart sunk – she hadn't expected Qui-Gon to die so suddenly. Obi-Wan's cry of pain must have happened when his Master was stabbed. She briefly looked around the room for the Sith assassin, but there was no sign of the Zabrak.

Rhys knelt beside her distraught friend, tears cutting through her white face paint as she removed her unwieldy headdress. Obi-Wan didn't say a word at her appearance, but just clutched Qui-Gon to him tighter. She placed a comforting arm around his shoulder, holding him as they both mourned the death of his Master.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 **Hello! I'm a little sad... I only had one review on the last chapter! I can't say this enough but please, please, please review! I really like to have feedback and use that to shape the course of my story. Thank you to all of you that consistently read and are following this story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, just my OC's... which I am very proud of.**

* * *

Rhys couldn't tell how long she had been sitting with Obi-Wan when a dozen Naboo troopers found them, gaping at the fallen Jedi. She hastily composed herself, not bothering to fix her ruined makeup and wild hair, and stood formally before the troopers.

"Get a stretcher," she said, voice wavering slightly, "And inform the Queen that the assassin has been killed." The troopers hurried off to obey her commands, leaving the room almost as quickly as they had entered it. Taking advantage of their sudden departure, Rhys knelt next to Obi-Wan again.

"Obi-Wan…" she said softly, but there was no response. Obi-Wan was in shock over the death of his Master and the sudden, violent breaking of their bond. She shook his shoulder gently, trying to break him out of his stupor, but to no avail. "Obi-Wan," she tried again, more firmly this time. Obi-Wan turned his head to her, his blue eyes staring sightlessly through her. "Obi-Wan, we have to go!" There was no response, "We can't stay here forever."

It seemed like nothing was getting through to the distraught padawan. Rhys tried again, shaking him slightly by the shoulders, "Qui-Gon wouldn't want you to sit here feeling sorry for yourself." At the mention of his Master's name he stirred slightly, "He would want you to see the mission through to the end!" Comprehension finally seemed to be dawning in Obi-Wan's eyes as if he finally realized where he was.

The troopers reappeared, carrying between them a large stretcher. Rhys stood up but maintained her hold on Obi-Wan's shoulder. "Obi-Wan, we need to go now." He looked back up at her once, then nodded curtly, composing himself. Without another word, he picked up Qui-Gon's body in his arms, carrying him over to the stretcher and setting him down gently before carefully placing his hands over his chest wound. Obi-Wan then stood stiffly off to the side, blank-faced, as the troopers carried the body away.

Obi-Wan looked like he would collapse any second so Rhys placed her arm around him in support before he could topple over from exhaustion. They slowly made their way back to the throne room where Padmé was holding court. Tam was the first to catch sight of his Master and the procession, hanging his head in sorrow when he realized who was laid out on the stretcher. The young Queen took one look at her sister's face and immediately sobered. She descended from her chair to stand by the stretcher, barely composed. After placing the again unresponsive Obi-Wan in a chair, Rhys brought her sister into a warm hug, consoling her not only for this loss, but all others that she had to bear.

When they broke apart, both put on their formal masks. "Your Highness, in the event of Master Jinn's death, the Jedi Council must be contacted," Rhys said, her voice breaking at the mention of Qui-Gon, "I would also request that Padawan Kenobi be placed under my care until the Council arrives." Padmé hastily nodded, wiping tears from her own face.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Rhys replied softly, "If you will excuse us, my padawan and I would like to retire." She beckoned for Tam, and he quickly joined her side.

"Saché will show you to your room," Padmé pronounced quietly. A small, brown-haired handmaiden stepped forward to guide the Jedi. Rhys nodded in appreciation, and steered Obi-Wan out of the room. Saché was silent as she led them to a smaller suite of rooms near the Queen's chambers, then left after promising to bring up several fresh pairs of clothes. Once the handmaiden was gone, Rhys and her padawan sat Obi-Wan on the bed, where he sat staring blankly ahead. Tamai looked at the older padawan with barely masked horror even as his own exhaustion crept up on him.

"Tamai," Rhys said, placing a hand on his shoulder, "Go and clean up in the refresher. I'll look after him." The boy hesitated, but obeyed, disappearing into an adjoining room. As soon as he was out of sight, Rhys set about removing Obi-Wan's outer tunic and boots. She tried to reach out to him through the Force, but he had closed his mental walls off from everything around him. When there was nothing else she could do, Rhys laid him back on the bed where he immediately curled up into a fetal position, his eyes closed.

A gentle knock on the door brought her to her feet. To her relief, it was Saché standing outside with a small stack of clothes and a food tray containing fruit and bread.

"I don't know if these will fit, but they're the closest in size," the handmaiden whispered. Rhys took the gifts gratefully, managing a weak smile.

"Thank you, Saché," she replied, "I'll let you know if we need anything else." The handmaiden nodded politely, then left as quickly as she came. Not for the first time, Rhys was glad that her sister had made such good friends in her handmaidens. When she reentered the room, Obi-Wan hadn't moved but Tam had emerged from the refresher and claimed a seat on the couch, his hair still damp. The boy perked up considerably at the sight of food, sighing happily when he bit into a warm roll.

"These are for you, Tam," Rhys said, handing him one of the sets of clothes that Saché had brought them, "There's a bed in the other room," she added, "You look like you're tired."

Tam opened his mouth to try and deny it, but ended up yawning furiously. He looked back up at his Master sheepishly before standing up and walking towards the door. When he was about to reach the door, however, he stopped and turned back to face his Master.

"Master…" he began, his voice trembling slightly, "Is Obi-Wan going to be all right?"

Rhys sighed heavily, "I don't know, Tam. The emotional shock of losing their Master so violently would be enough to drive any padawan to madness… but Obi-Wan is stronger than most. It may take time, but I believe that he'll eventually begin to heal." Tam seemed satisfied with that answer.

"Goodnight, Master," he said, giving her one last smile before slipping inside the other room.

"Goodnight, padawan," Rhys replied softly, even though she know that her apprentice most likely didn't hear her. With that, Rhys grabbed the bundle of clothes she estimated to be her size and went to the refresher. To her surprise, the set of pants and a tunic fit quite well and were very comfortable. She would have no trouble sleeping in them. She quickly stripped off the many layers of the Queen's battle dress and tossed aside the shoes – there was absolutely no way she was wearing those again – and pulled on the pants and tunic. After ridding her face of the smeared red and white makeup, painstakingly untangling her hair, and nursing several small burns she didn't realize that she had, Rhys finally felt her exhaustion take over her body. If she didn't go to sleep soon, she was going to pass out standing up.

Shuffling back into the main room, Rhys caught a glimpse of her padawan through the open bedroom door. As usual, he had formed a nest of blankets and had buried himself underneath it. Amused, Rhys thought back to when Tam had first become her padawan – she had been so terrified that he would suffocate himself in his sleep underneath all of the blankets that she'd kept a watchful eye on him for several nights. It was only after she fell asleep by his side did he find out that she had been watching over him, and explained in between giggles that he had slept like that since he was a youngling in the crèche.

Obi-Wan, on the other hand, never could sleep in the same position all night. When she passed by his bed, Rhys was gladdened to see that his fetal position had loosened, and he was now blissfully asleep. _Good,_ Rhys thought _, After everything that's happened today, he deserves to sleep._ Content that both of the padawans would be fine during the night, Rhys commandeered a pillow from the end of Obi-Wan's bed and settled herself on the couch.

* * *

 _"We'll handle this."_

 _Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon toss their cloaks aside to face the Zabrak assassin, who merely greets them by igniting his double-bladed crimson lightsaber. The Jedi attack, driving the Sith away from the hanger and onto the power generator catwalks. It is an impressive display of swordsmanship from all three as they jump acrobatically between several narrow catwalks._

 _Suddenly, the Sith lashes out with a brutal kick, sending Obi-Wan tumbling from the catwalk and leaving Qui-Gon to face him alone. Luckily, Obi-Wan was able to catch himself on the ledge of another catwalk below them and hoist himself back up. The padawan rushed to catch up to his Master, who has pursued the Sith into a corridor that is divided periodically by laser shields. The two are separated by a single shield while Obi-Wan is caught several sections behind. The Jedi Master sits down and begins to meditate, calming himself through the Force. The Zabrak sets to pacing, glaring menacingly at his tranquil opponent._

 _As soon as the laser shields disappear the Sith attacked furiously. He and Qui-Gon battle around the mouth of a cavernous melting pit, exchanging blows that would have destroyed lesser swordsmen. Obi-Wan is stopped by the lasers right before he could get through, and can do nothing but watch as his Master grows more tired. He watches in horror as the Zabrak catches Qui-Gon off guard, bashing his lightsaber hilt into the Jedi's chin, then finally running him through with his red blade._

 _NOOOOOOOOOOO!_

Rhys awoke with a jolt, clutching at her temples. Obi-Wan's fear, pain, and anger was overwhelming, tearing through the Force. Concerned, she rushed across the room to his bedside where Obi-Wan was thrashing in the throes of a nightmare. Rhys had no doubt that he was reliving once again the moment of his Master's death. Tears were streaming down his cheeks as he flailed, letting out small whimpers of pain.

"Shhh… you're okay, I've got you," she soothed gently like she would a small child, sitting on the bed beside him. "Shhh, Obi… you're safe now…" Rhys held him in her arms, setting her back against the headboard as he clutched desperately to her arms. Tears continued to run down his face, but the pain-filled cries had now tapered off into broken sobs. They too, grew softer as she rubbed soothing circles across his shoulders.

She held him until he fell asleep, peace written on his face. As soon as she was sure that he wouldn't wake again, Rhys attempted to extricate herself from underneath his weight. When she moved, however, Obi-Wan merely held on to her tighter, resisting the change. Rhys huffed a sigh, cursing her sleeping friend, and settled herself in for another long night.

* * *

Tam woke up to a sudden disturbance in the Force. He hastily untangled himself from his blankets and crept silently to the doorway, one hand on the hilt of his lightsaber. He anxiously probed the Force, but whatever had caused the disturbance was gone. Still on guard, he peeked into the main room where his Master and Obi-Wan were supposed to be.

He was surprised to see them both dead asleep in the bed, their arms around each other. Tam grinned at the sight – his Master was very… sensitive to touch, and allowed few people to touch her without her consent. Tam stifled a giggle as Obi-Wan nuzzled his Master's shoulder in his sleep. He nearly lost it entirely when his Master began to softly snore.

 _Oh yeah_ , he thought mischievously, _Obi-Wan's going to be just fine in the morning._ He left the two of them alone and burrowed back underneath his blankets. _Everything's going to be fine in the morning…_


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

 **Hello everyone! Thank you so much for the reviews and hooray for double chapter weeks!**

 **Robinbird79 - Yeah, I know it was an awful place to stop... oh well.**

 **CardiacCane - Thanks so much for your feedback! I'm actually going to be addressing the battle aftermath in the next few chapters.**

 **StormieSkyeGirl - Yes, the ship has sailed, but it's sailing slowly for now.**

 **Disclaimer: Own Star Wars, I do not... Make me sad, this does...**

* * *

"Master…. Master, wake up…"

Rhys tried, groggily, to wave off the source of the noise that had interrupted her dreamless sleep. It had been nice to just rest without any more exhausting dreams pulling at her mind.

"Come on, Master… I don't wanna miss breakfast!"

Rhys cracked an eye open, not wanting to fully return to a functioning level. A blurry mass of black and tan filled her vision, eventually coalescing into the annoyed face of her padawan.

"Is it really morning already?" she mumbled sleepily.

"Yeah, it is," Tam replied brightly, "You must have been really tired or something because you didn't wake up for your dawn meditation."

Rhys groaned and sat up, only to find that she couldn't. _Something_ was resting across her midsection, preventing her from moving. Now fully alert, Rhys sat up as much as she could without moving whatever was laying on her. To her surprise, it was Obi-Wan: His body was curled into her side with one arm laying across her midsection. To her even greater surprise, her own arm was directly underneath his head.

She mentally cursed herself for falling asleep while trying to comfort her friend. She remembered the previous day's events – the battle, the assassin, their hard-won victory, and bringing Obi-Wan back to the room to try and treat his shock. Careful not to wake him, Rhys managed to extricate herself from Obi-Wan's arms, ignoring the sideways glances from her padawan.

"Did you sleep well, Master?" Tam asked innocently as soon as her feet hit the floor. He fully intended to use the opportunity to give his Master a little bit of good-natured grief.

"Not a word, Tamai," she scowled, "Not a word…"

"Whatever you say, Master," the boy grinned, sitting on the arm of the couch, "Saché came by five minutes ago to say that breakfast is in a half hour, and the Council will be here by midday." When he looked back at her face, Tam immediately decided that his Master's calm angry face was much more terrifying than if she had actually yelled at him. "Don't worry, she didn't come in," he said hastily, "I answered the door." Rhys cocked an eyebrow, not sure whether to be angry with her padawan or relieved.

"I suppose we should get ready for breakfast then," she replied shortly, turning back to Obi-Wan, "Go get dressed." The boy shrugged and disappeared into the other room to change.

Rhys let out a groan and rubbed at her temples. Why did everything have to be so complicated on this thrice-blasted mission? There was still reconstruction to be done on Naboo, not to mention dealing with Nute Gunray in the Senate, and – as always – she had to give her report to the Council. Then there was the question of what to do about Anakin… with Qui-Gon gone, there was no one else to take care of him. It was impossible to send him back to Tatooine and he was far too powerful to ignore. Overall, the boy seemed to represent a big _druk_ load of problems.

"Obi-Wan…" Rhys shook his shoulder, "Obi-Wan, you need to wake up. The Council will be here soon."

Obi-Wan blearily rubbed at his eyes, sitting up slowly as if confused as to how he got there. "Tell me it was a dream," he said softly, "That all of it was a dream and that he isn't gone, that he's just in the other room waiting for me to wake up…" Rhys sat next to him on the bed and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I won't lie to you, Obi," she replied, "There will be a time for grief, but until that time we have to keep moving on. Qui-Gon would want us to do our duty to the Queen and see the mission through, yes?"

Obi-Wan gave an imperceptible nod and stood up abruptly. "I'll be ready in ten minutes," he stated quickly, grabbing the bundle of clothes Rhys had placed on his nightstand and retreating to the refresher. As soon as he was out of sight, Rhys breathed a sigh of relief. Obi-Wan, thank the Force, clearly remembered nothing about the events after Qui-Gon's death or his subsequent catatonic state. _That would have been a conversation I hope to never have with him,_ she thought as she pulled on her newly-cleaned tunic.

* * *

The Queen and her retinue was already in the dining room to greet them when the three Jedi arrived. Padmé was once again in her regal attire and face paint, shadowed by her yellowed handmaidens. The Jedi were given a place of honor on the Queen's right as a simple but beautiful array of foods were placed on the table. Tam and Anakin looked at the spread with barely suppressed excitement as they dug in.

"Will you be staying for the celebrations, Master Talik?" the Queen asked, turning to face her sister. Rhys gave a small smile in reply.

"Perhaps, if the Council will allow it. In light of recent events, I'm sure they would not refuse such a request."

"The people of Naboo wish to express their gratitude for your assistance," the Queen continued, looking between the three Jedi before settling her gaze on Anakin, "We would all like to thank you, and to express that gratitude, we have undertaken the repairs of your ship." Rhys opened her mouth to answer, but was stopped by the appearance of a uniformed messenger who bowed before addressing the Queen.

"Your Highness, the Chancellor's ship is landing in the main hangar."

"We will be there shortly," Amidala answered regally, the rest of the table standing to join her, "Master Talik, might I have a word?" As the rest of the procession filed behind them, Rhys moved to stand by the Queen, careful not to step on her long black dress that trailed behind her.

"Thanks for the repairs," Rhys said gratefully as she moved in tandem with her sister. The Queen's red lips split in a small smile.

"It's the least that I could do after what you've done for us," Padmé replied, "Besides, I figured that you would want your own ship to return home on rather than on the Chancellor's cruiser." Rhys nodded appreciatively – she definitely didn't want to be stuck on a ship with several members of the Council and even more politicians. That definitely wouldn't bolster her already less-than-stellar reputation with the illustrious members of the Senate and the Chancellor.

"How is Eirtaé?" Rhys asked, noticing that she couldn't sense the blond handmaiden's presence among the other hooded figures.

"Recovering in the hospital wing," Padmé answered, "Her blaster wound was a little more severe than she let on, but she should be well enough to attend the celebrations."

"She saved my life on more than one occasion," Rhys admitted, looking out of the corner of her eye at a handmaiden she had identified as Sabé beside her, "You are truly lucky to have them."

"Oh yes, especially after they threatened to tie me up and leave me in the swamp if I didn't go through with the decoy plan," Padmé said sarcastically, pursing her lips. Rhys nearly laughed – her sister truly was a Queen at heart, and one that did not like to take orders from anyone else. She looked at the handmaidens with new respect; not many beings would have the daring to go head-to-head with her stubborn sister.

They had barely reached the main hangar when Rhys looked up to see the red painted Chancellor's shuttle gracefully begin to land. She could sense Master Yoda on the ship, along with Mace Windu and several other members of the Jedi High Council. When the ship finally touched down, Captain Panaka appeared escorting Nute Gunray and Rune Haako, who were accompanied by several guards.

"Now, Viceroy, you're going to have to go back to the Senate and explain all this," Padmé said, the joy of her victory creeping into her voice.

"I think you can kiss your trade franchise goodbye," Panaka replied smugly as he took them away towards the Chancellor's cruiser.

The main ramp of the cruiser lowered as Chancellor Palpatine and his Republic Guards descend the walkway, followed by Yoda and the other Jedi. Rhys tried to hide her dislike as he approached, confidently striding towards the Jedi. However, as much as she did not agree with his political views and policies, she did believe that he would be a strong Chancellor – whether or not that was a good thing still remained to be seen.

"We are indebted to you for your bravery, Master Jedi," Palpatine said as the three Jedi and Anakin bowed, "Without your assistance, all would have been lost."

"We were simply doing our duty, Chancellor," Rhys subtly reminded him. It had always been a battle of politics between the Jedi and the Senate, but when Valorum was Chancellor, the hostilities had died down to almost polite cordiality. Now it seemed to be back to the way it used to be – both the Jedi and the Senate refused to trust the other to do their duty.

"Of course, Master Talik," the Chancellor replied, "We would not expect anything less of a Jedi of your caliber." Rhys ignored the blatant attempt at flattery. "And you, young Skywalker," he continued, placing a hand on Anakin's shoulder, "We will watch your career with great interest." As the Chancellor walked away, the Jedi turned to the approaching Councilmembers. Master Yoda was the first to greet them, followed by Mace Windu and Ki-Adi Mundi.

"Received your message, we did, about Qui-Gon's death," Yoda said, shaking his head sadly, "Pay our respects, we will."

"Thank you, Master," Rhys replied solemnly. Obi-Wan stared stoically on ahead, tightly reining in his emotions.

"The Council would like to hear your report on the mission, Master Talik," Mace said, turning to her, "We have some very important things to discuss."

"Yes, Master," she replied with a bow as the Council began to move on. As Yoda passed, Rhys heard him request Obi-Wan to meet with him privately later. She huffed a sigh as she followed the Council, her padawan at her side – this was going to be a long day…

* * *

"…And when I arrived, Obi-Wan had already killed the Zabrak," Rhys finished, looking between the seated Councilmembers as they convened in a multi-windowed room. Tam stood silently off to her side as the evening sunlight streamed through the windows. Many of the Councilmembers were nodding silently, mulling over the information she had just presented.

"Have you anything else to add?" Mace asked, raising his eyebrows. Rhys smiled cheekily at him.

"Not unless you want to know what I had for breakfast this morning."

Windu's face darkened at her flippant reply while other Councilmembers – including Yoda – smiled with amusement. "Thank you, Master Talik," he said as if forced, "Your report has given us insight on the situation."

Rhys gave a small nod in his direction in an attempt to negate his obvious annoyance with her. While she did not necessarily agree with Windu often, she did respect him for his prowess as a warrior and his wisdom as a leader. They did tend to butt heads, however, especially concerning her more liberal views on the Code and her sarcastic replies.

"What is going to happen to Padawan Kenobi?" she asked, her gaze flickering to her former Master.

"Confer on him the level of Jedi Knight, the Council will," Yoda answered, "In accordance to the ancient ways, it is." Rhys nodded in agreement – the Council had done the same to her shortly after the mission to Nar Oto and Torra's death.

"And Anakin? What is to be his fate?" she added. The tension in the room heightened perceptively as the Councilmembers exchanged glances between themselves. Rhys sensed that the Council was very divided about the issue, but that a firm decision had been made concerning the matter.

"Gave his word to train the boy, young Kenobi did," Yoda said haltingly, as if he himself didn't agree with the decision, "Permission to take Skywalker as his padawan, the Council has given."

Rhys felt a strange wave of emotion flow through her. Relief was there, but there was also an undercurrent of wariness. Obi-Wan had just lost his Master, granted Knighthood, and was now taking a padawan to boot – even she hadn't considered taking on a padawan learner until a year after her own Knighting Ceremony. However, it was much better that Anakin be placed with a level-headed teacher like Obi-Wan rather than someone who would fuel his own recklessness and disregard for protocol.

"Very well, Masters," she replied, bowing respectfully, "If you'll excuse us, my padawan and I need to prepare for tonight's ceremonies." The Council nodded their agreement as the pair exited the room and entered into the next antechamber where Obi-Wan was waiting with Anakin.

"How did it go?" Obi-Wan asked, standing up to greet them.

"As well as any of my Council meeting go, I suppose," Rhys replied casually, waving her hand dismissively. Obi-Wan swallowed nervously.

"I'm about to meet with Master Yoda," he announced, "Any suggestions?"

Rhys smiled, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Don't do anything that I wouldn't do, and remember that he survived more than a decade of having me as a padawan – he couldn't possibly be more annoyed with you than he could ever with me." Obi-Wan gave a nervous smile and thanked her before disappearing into the room.

"Come on Tam, Anakin," Rhys called before turning away, "We have to go get ready."

* * *

Qui-Gon's funeral was a private affair, attended by the Jedi, the Queen and her handmaidens, and a few guards and Gungans. Rhys looked on solemnly from underneath her hooded cloak as the body was lit aflame, casting twisting shadows on the walls of the funeral temple. She stood next to the Queen in her elaborate mourning gown, offering silent support. As the fire burned on, Obi-Wan turned to Anakin who was standing beside him.

"He is one with the Force, Anakin," Obi-Wan said calmly, "You must let go." Rhys felt the waves of steady calm emanate from him, finally accepting the loss of his Master.

"What will happen to me now?" Anakin asked sadly, forcing back his tears.

"I am your Master now," Obi-Wan replied, "You will become a Jedi, I promise."

They fell silent as they watched the flames. Rhys could sense Anakin's relief at being accepted by the Council, and his newfound admiration of Obi-Wan. She looked over to her former Master and Mace Windu standing together, conversing quietly as many of the other attendees began to file out.

"There is no doubt that the mysterious warrior was a Sith," Windu said darkly.

"Always two there are," Yoda replied, "No more, no less. A Master and an apprentice."

"But which one was destroyed, the Master or the apprentice?"

"Investigate this, we must," Yoda said firmly. They gave each other concerned looks as they left the funeral temple. After a few minutes, only Obi-Wan, Rhys, and their padawans remained. Tam looked at his Master questioningly, uncertainty flickering in his gaze. She waved him on as she moved to stand by Obi-Wan. Anakin impulsively reached for his new Master's hand as he moved away, but gave the grieving Jedi space as Tam led him back into the palace.

As soon as they were gone, Obi-Wan sank to his knees, staring at the dying embers of the fire as silent tears ran down his face. Rhys joined him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and leaning against him. Both stayed to watch the fire die as they grieved the loss of Qui-Gon Jinn together.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"You wanted to see me, Master?" Rhys asked as she entered Master Yoda's makeshift quarters. He had summoned her shortly before the celebratory parade that was supposed to take place later that morning to commemorate the new peace treaty between the Naboo and the Gungans.

"Yes, Padawan," the old Jedi answered, motioning for her to sit across from him, "Speak with you, I must."

Rhys sat on the low chair opposite him, "What can I do, Master?"

"Recovered, the Sith's severed lightsaber was, in the generators," Yoda revealed, producing the severed half of the Zabrak's saberstaff and offering it to her. Rhys took it, gazing at the metal with a mix of intrigue and wariness. "Wish to know more about the Sith assassin, the Council does."

"I'm assuming that you want me to find out where he came from and investigate any leads that could reveal the other Sith," Rhys said bluntly, handing the half back to Yoda. The ancient Master nodded slowly.

"To find our enemy, know our enemy, we must," he replied softly, "Learn more about this new generation of Sith, we must, or else suffer in our ignorance." Rhys agreed with her former Master – the easiest way to find the remaining Sith Lord would be to find the connections between them and the dead one.

"More details, will the Council give you upon your return to Coruscant," Yoda continued, "Tell your padawan, you may, but involve him in your investigation, you must not. Need additional distraction, he does not."

"Additional distraction?" Rhys cocked an eyebrow.

"A minor assignment, the Council has for your padawan," Yoda replied, "Aid Skywalker in the Temple, he will, when Kenobi cannot. Assist him in learning the Jedi way, he can. Much easier to understand from his own classmates than an older Jedi, it is."

"Very well, Master," Rhys responded, standing up and bowing to the elder Jedi, "May the Force be with you."

* * *

After the parade, Padmé announced that she was going to be holding a banquet in the honor of all of the visiting Jedi and Senate members that accompanied the Chancellor in her palace. When they had all retired to their quarters after the parade, the Queen sent Sabé to Rhys' quarters with a summons. Leaving Tam to his own devices, Rhys followed the handmaiden to the Queen's quarters.

"Your Highness?" Rhys called teasingly as soon as she entered the ornate rooms. Padmé, still in her white celebration gown, turned around to meet her.

"I'm not that in here," she responded warmly, hugging her sister, "Even my handmaidens don't call me that when we're alone – it gets so irritating to be called "Your Highness" every second of the day."

"I'll bet it does," Rhys said wryly, gazing about the rooms, "I can't image how you stand being the Queen day after day."

Padmé grinned at her sister's teasing and sat gracefully on the decorated sofa. "I used to think that too when I was first elected, but now I'm getting more used to it." She beckoned for the handmaidens to join them, "And besides, if I wasn't Queen, how could I ever find such great friends?"

Rhys rolled her eyes at Padmé. When the handmaidens sat down, Rhys was pleased to see Eirtaé among them, albeit with her arm in a sling. Rabé and Sabé also seemed to have sustained injuries in the fighting, but they weren't nearly as noticeable.

"All right, I'll bite: what was it you wanted to talk to me about?" Rhys asked, genuinely confused as to why Padmé had summoned her. Padmé looked sideways at her handmaidens with a sly look.

"Well… since so many foreign dignitaries are visiting, I thought that this should be a special occasion…" she began slowly, "The last time that we had a true celebration was after my coronation, but we haven't had a real gala such as this one since then." Rhys narrowed her eyes as if to make her get to the point. "Anyway, the handmaidens and I thought that since it is such an occasion, we should really put our best foot forward."

"And what does that mean?" Rhys asked crossly, not liking where the conversation was heading.

"Well… I thought that…"

Sabé interrupted the stammering girl boldly, "I believe that her words last night were something along the lines of "You always wear those awful robes, and since we're about the same size there's no way that you're wearing that to our gala. We have clothes for Tam too, if he wants it, but I'm afraid that you have no choice. Since you are from Naboo, we thought that it would be appropriate for you to dress as such."

Rhys was stunned. They wanted her to… what? "There's no way I'm wearing that dress again, Padmé," she intoned flatly.

"Not that dress," Padmé said hurriedly, "A different one… it won't be heavy, I promise, and you won't have to wear any awful shoes!" Rhys was silent for several moments, debating if she should participate in the upcoming battle of wills against her sister. The two silently waged war until Rhys finally caved.

"Fine!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air, "Since I can't convince you otherwise… I'll wear a stupid dress." Padmé gave a girlish squeal of delight, hugged her older sister, and then hustled her off into the wardrobe room.

The next few hours passed by in a blur as Padmé and the handmaidens tried on various dresses for the gala on their unwilling new mannequin. Sabé was the only one that expressed any sort of sympathy to Rhys' plight, as she was often the Queen's dress form when getting fitted for new clothes when Padmé didn't have time. Her only consolation was that Tam, Anakin, and Obi-Wan were all receiving new suits on behalf of the Naboo. However, she wouldn't actually see any of them until the gala started.

After vetoing countless dresses, Rhys could feel her patience wearing thin – did Padmé have _anything_ practical in her Wardrobe? The only one she had somewhat liked so far was one of Sabé's dresses, a simple cream and gold gown that everyone else thought was too plain to wear to the gala. As she settled herself in for another hour of dress fitting, Rhys heard Rabé squeal from the other room and came out carrying yet another dress bag.

"Try this one, please!" she shrieked, causing the others to poke their heads into the main room to see what was going on. Rhys rolled her eyes, but did as the handmaiden had asked. To her surprise, the dress wasn't incredibly extravagant, and suited her quite well. It was a floor-length, slender gown that faded from a delicate rose to a soft yellow at the hems, with elegant black lace crossing over the sleeves and bodice. The only detriment she could see was the small, crown-like headpiece, but Rabé assured her that it would look perfect in her hair.

Moments later, Rhys was staring awestruck at her reflection. Rabé had coiffed her hair into an elegant knot of curls, weaving the headpiece into her brown locks. Padmé had lent her beautiful pair of diamond earrings along with a short necklace that glittered gaily. Sabé had done her makeup, accenting her large brown eyes and concealing the many small scars she had accumulated over the years. Eirtaé had volunteered a simple pair of black shoes with small heels, smiling in approval when all was said and done. She looked far different than the Rhys Talik she often saw in the mirror – no braids, no beads, and no scars.

"You're going to be the belle of the ball," Eirtaé announced confidently.

Rabé giggled and snorted, "Kenobi won't be able to take his eyes off of you!" Her comment elicited a new round of giggles from the other girls and a deep blush from Rhys.

"It's not like that," she protested, attempting to be heard over the giggles, "Obi-Wan is one of my oldest friends!" That was true – since the beginning of this mission, she could feel their bond of friendship strengthening. They both had shared their grief with one another over the death of Qui-Gon, and provided comfort to the other. Rhys couldn't say that about many of her other friends.

"Well, whatever happens, we'll have your back," Padmé said in an attempt to placate her sister and prevent her from going after Rabé. Rhys sighed and picked up her skirts.

"Let's get this over with, then."

* * *

Tamai stood sulking by Anakin as he contemplated mutiny. The formal wear Padmé had picked out for him fit him perfectly, but that didn't stop it from being irritating in odd places, namely his tight collar. His only consolation was that both Anakin and Obi-Wan had been stuffed into suits and were in much of his same predicament with the newly Knighted Jedi in a dark blue, his padawan in a cool gray, and Tam in an earthy green.

The three Jedi were standing on the outskirts of the dance floor, watching the couples spin about gracefully. Tam could feel Anakin's anxiety as he scanned the room for Queen Amidala, eventually locking on her figure as she and her handmaidens entered the ballroom. She was wearing a graceful white celebration gown much like she had at the parade, but this one was without the large fan on her back and lacking the cape of flower petals. Her handmaidens trailed behind her, wearing identical midnight blue dresses without hoods, revealing their exuberant faces. Strangely enough, his Master seemed to be nowhere in sight.

"Well… don't you three clean up well!" a teasing voice called from behind them. Tam whirled around, his jaw dropping as he caught sight of the woman standing behind them.

"Master?" Tam asked incredulously, scanning her figure in confusion. The voice was the same, but it was so hard to reconcile this elegant, refined lady in front of him with the rough-and-tumble Jedi Master that he knew so well. Rhys Talik was many things, but "refined" wasn't often one of them.

"You… er… look nice," Obi-Wan stammered out, having never before seen his friend in such a state. Rhys huffed in annoyance and clutched at her skirts in a very unladylike way as she staggered next to them. Tam hid a grin – there was the Master he knew and loved!

"It's all her doing," she spat, glaring daggers at her sister from across the room, "It's kriffing ridiculous, that's what it is!"

Tam had been the subject of his Master's annoyance enough times before to know when she was truly irritated by something. This time, however, he sensed an undercurrent of happiness beneath her usual gruff veneer. "Well, I think you look wonderful, Master," Tam said, earning a bit of a smile from her for his efforts.

"I suppose there are some benefits of being the sister of the Queen," Rhys mused thoughtfully, still not willing to accept her strange fascination with the sight of everyone around her dressed so formally. She watched the couples move around the dance floor as the fast-tempo music led way to a slower, more stately dance.

Rhys tried not to make eye contact with a middle-aged Pantoran Senator advancing towards her clearly intending to ask her to dance. Over the man's head, she caught a glimpse of Padmé barely reining in a giggle as she watched the scene unfold.

"My Lady, may I have this dance?" the Senator asked with a shallow bow, his eyes never leaving her face as he stretched out a blue-skinned hand. She desperately wanted to tell him to go chase a Bantha, but if she did something rude it might reflect badly on Padmé and the Naboo.

Forcing a smile and willing herself not to look at her chuckling companions, Rhys accepted his offered hand. "Of course, sir." The boys' chortles grew into full-blown laughter as the Senator led her out onto the dance floor and began leading her through a rather simple waltz. They were soon silenced when she shot them a death glare over her shoulder.

 _This is going to be a long night_ , Rhys thought as the Senator led her into a twirl.

* * *

Rhys grinned evilly at her padawan's panicked expression as he attempted to lead Rabé through a particularly complicated step. The handmaiden had finally cornered her padawan at his Master's request as revenge, steering the red-faced boy in the direction of the dance floor. Rhys looked to the far end of the ballroom, looking on interestedly as Anakin proceeded to ask Padmé to dance. She winced in tandem with her sister as Anakin clumsily stepped on her feet, then smiled when the young Queen placed him on top of her feet and gracefully spun him around, her laughter echoing through the hall.

"You're going to have your hands full with him when he grows up," Obi-Wan said, reappearing at her side and motioning towards Tam, who was now being swarmed by a three or four young girls who were all twittering about him. The poor padawan looked overwhelmed at all the attention, but soon asked one of them to dance and disappeared among the dancing couples.

"I know," she replied drily, "Almost as much as you're going to have with Anakin." Obi-Wan winced as he caught sight of his new padawan still dancing with Padmé.

"Ah… we'll have to have the talk about attachment far sooner than I thought," he responded uneasily, not looking at all comfortable with having that conversation with his padawan.

"You won't have to do that for several years, Obi," she reassured him, nearly laughing at his relieved face. Rhys had barely noticed that the music had given way to a beautiful Alderaanian Waltz when she saw a certain Pantoran Senator heading her way again. She quickly turned to Obi-Wan and hissed, "Ask me to dance, now!"

"What?" he responded, clearly taken aback. Rhys rolled her eyes and subtly gestured behind her.

"If I have to dance with the Senator from Pantora one more time, I may just go on a homicidal rampage!" she said firmly, "So are you going to dance with me or not?" Obi-Wan seemed to finally catch on to the swiftly approaching Senator as he looked over her shoulder. Sensing that he was taking too long, Rhys roughly grabbed Obi-Wan's hand and dragged him onto the dance floor.

She was about to start leading him through some simple sequences when he smoothly placed his hand on her waist and began to dance. Rhys nearly tripped over her own feet, blushing, before regaining her balance and gracefully going through the steps in tandem with Obi-Wan.

"When did you learn to dance?" her eyes narrowed as Obi-Wan put her through a gentle turn.

Now it was Obi-Wan's turn to blush. "When I was younger, I thought that I would impress the girl l liked by learning how to dance, so I asked Master Vena Kaa to teach me. It took a little while at first, but I eventually got it after a lot of practice."

"And did she?" Rhys asked, having never heard about this before. She didn't think it was possible, but Obi-Wan's face grew even redder.

"No – in fact, she laughed in my face," he answered flatly.

"Well then she was a fool," Rhys pronounced, startling Obi-Wan with the conviction in her voice, "I think that it's lovely when men know how to dance, and can dance well rather than make a fool of themselves when they step on your feet."

"Thanks, I guess," Obi-Wan responded grudgingly, a smile beginning to creep up his face as they continued to glide about the floor.

When they had been silent for a few moments, Rhys asked, "Are you and Anakin going back to Coruscant tomorrow on the Chancellor's cruiser?"

Obi-Wan made a face and snorted, "I'd rather not. I'm not exactly fond of sitting between the Council and a band of politicians as they both accuse each other politely of not doing their jobs." Rhys nodded in agreement – that was exactly the reason she was waiting until the _Falcon_ was repaired to return to Coruscant.

"You could always wait for a few days and come on the _Falcon_ with Tam and I," she offered, "It's not much of a reprieve, but at least you won't be there when the Council delivers the news of what happened to the rest of the Temple." Obi-Wan nodded gratefully in relief.

"Thanks, Rhys," he sighed, unseen tension leaving his body, "I'll owe you one-" Rhys interrupted him with a shake of her head.

"Consider it payment for the dance," her eyes twinkled with mirth, "After all, you did save me from death by Senator." A grin split Obi-Wan's face as the dance ended. _Maybe this wasn't so bad after all,_ Rhys thought as the pair walked back to their gaping padawans.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

 **Hello, everyone! Thank you so much for the amazing reviews! My schedule has become much more steady, so you can expect one or two chapters every Monday from here on out. A little bit of a heads up - this story may get a little long, as I plan for it to go right up until the very start of Episode II. Thanks for sticking with me! Also, I feel like I'm stuck on Hoth... it's literally been snowing in Northern Utah for a week!**

 **Robinbird79 - I wanted to add a little bit of fluff just to lighten things up. I'm a little worried about the ten-year gap between episodes and how to cross it, but I guess the best direction to go is forward for now.**

 **CardiacCane - I really think that Anakin needed a friend... I mean, come on, Obi-Wan is great and all, but they have a completely different relationship that Rhys and Tam's relationship as Master and padawan. As for Maul, personally I believe that he is one of the greatest characters in the Star Wars galaxy the still has an unfinished story, including Ahsoka, Asajj Ventress, and Boba Fett to name a few.**

 **Disclaimer: I love Star Wars, but I don't own it... I just get to play on the playground of the galaxy far, far away...**

* * *

Rhys stood in the Queen's private gardens atop the waterfall ridge. The only way to get to the gardens was by way of a small, secret tunnel that only the Queen, her handmaidens, and Panaka knew about. When Rhys had asked Sabé for a quiet place to meditate, the handmaiden had shown her the tunnel entrance and where it led before leaving her to her own devices.

It reminded her almost immediately of her favorite place in the Room of a Thousand Fountains – mildly fragrant flowers, beautiful fruit trees, and the soft trickle of water echoing off of stone. Rhys had brought the half of the Sith's lightsaber that Yoda had left with her, intending to meditate on the connection to its owner. She sat down in the middle of the main expanse of grass, placing the lightsaber half in front of her, and began to clear her mind.

As she began to meditate, Rhys felt herself growing cold, much like she had when facing down the Sith assassin on Nar Oto. The Force swirled around her, immersing her body in the flow of the Force. Rhys sensed a vision coming, and carefully lowered part of her shields to the raging river of energy around her.

 _She was running in the dark, metallic footsteps ringing out behind her. She felt fear, but couldn't determine who it was coming from. The metallic clanking was getting closer as she ran on, getting closer to the solitary point of light up ahead._

 _"You are chasing a shadow…" a man's deep voice echoed through the darkness. Rhys took a hurried glance over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of her pursuer, but only saw red light._

 _"…A shadow we all knew to be lost to the darkness… you may try to find him, but know that he will be hunting for you long before you realize, and when you finally know the depth of your mistake, he will kill you…"_

Rhys could feel herself being swallowed by the Dark Side of the Force emanating from the lightsaber in front of her and struggled to cut off the vision before it consumed her. An intense feeling of cold was burning through her body, cutting off her breath. As she struggled to breathe, Rhys was bombarded by more visions.

 _"You don't trust me?"_

 _"I don't know you!"_

 _"Well, let us change that. Call me… 'Old Master'… and you?"_

 _"Call me Jabba."_

 _"Hmm… come then, Jabba."_

 _"Two must lift these stones – no more, no less. That is the way of the Sith…. To defeat your enemy, you must know your enemy, even practice their ways… Now, young Jedi, help me!"_

Rhys was thrust from the visions with a jerk, falling flat on her back from the force of the blow. She lay back, stunned, as the cold feeling began to subside. Rhys stayed on the grass, staring at the white clouds above her head as she pondered the new wave of vision. As usual, her bits and pieces were next to useless by themselves, and until she could find something to connect them to they would remain that way. It was maddeningly unhelpful, but such was often the way of the Force, especially concerning visions.

 _I need to dig deeper_ , Rhys thought as she pulled herself into a sitting position. Although she had a reputation among the other Jedi Shadows for her skills at tracking artifacts, she didn't have the gifts needed to get any more helpful information. Tracking a living being – or in this case, not so living anymore – was a completely different set of talents that she didn't possess.

Unfortunately, there was really only one other Jedi that was well-known for his tracking prowess that she could go to… but that in and of itself posed another problem. Rhys sighed as she stood up, using the Force to pull the lightsaber into her hand. _I need to talk to Aayla…_

* * *

"You came here in this?" Obi-Wan cried incredulously, "You're braver than I thought!"

"Try 'reckless'," Tam muttered under his breath as he hefted his bag over his shoulder and entered the _Millennium Falcon_ , earning a glare from his Master. Anakin stared at the ship in wonder, excitedly getting a closer look at the starboard side guns.

"Well I certainly hope it has enough power to get off the ground," Obi-Wan remarked, looking at the Falcon in doubt.

"You wound me, sir!" she said in mock-offense, "She'll make point five past lightspeed!"

Obi-Wan merely rolled his eyes and ushered Anakin up the ramp, much to the boy's protest. Rhys shook her head at them as she checked over the outer repairs that Padmé's mechanics had finished. After staying on Naboo for a week longer than she had originally intended, the four Jedi had stayed to help the young Queen restore peace to her planet after the invasion. There were homes to be rebuilt, people to be fed, and condolence letters to be written to the families of those that had died in the service of their Queen. Padmé drew strength from her friends and family around her as she restored Naboo to its previous peaceful state.

All seemed to be in good order, now all there was left to do was say goodbye to her sister for what seemed like the millionth time. Rhys had already bid farewell to her parents, but Padmé was reluctant to let her sister leave once again. To her surprise, Padmé appeared in a simple handmaiden's robe as Rhys walked around to the front of the ship.

"Sabé offered to be the Queen for a few moments so I could see you off," Padmé explained as she embraced her sister, "So for now, I can just be Padmé, telling her sister goodbye like any other person."

"Oh yes, this is completely normal," Rhys drawled sarcastically.

Padmé rolled her eyes. "Are you sure that you couldn't stay another day? I could always tell the Council that the palace hasn't been completely secured!" she pled desperately.

"I've already stayed here a week too long with the excuse that the _Falcon_ wasn't finished. If I stay any longer, the Council will be even more annoyed with me than they usually are… and besides, Anakin needs to begin his training and get settled in at the Temple." Padmé's face fell at her words, exposing her heartache at watching her sister leave once more.

"We'll see each other again, Padmé," Rhys reassured, sensing her sister's nervous apprehension, "I promise."

Padmé gave a small smile, "Just don't get into too much trouble until then, okay?"

"I will try, but I can't guarantee it… not all of my missions are fun and games like this one was," Rhys replied, eyes twinkling as she gave her sister one last hug. "May the Force be with you, Padmé," she said softly as they broke apart.

"And with you, Rhys."

Sensing that no more words could be said, Rhys flashed her sister one last smile before disappearing up the _Falcon's_ ramp, closing behind her with a hiss of steam. She passed the two padawans sitting at the table in the main hold, beginning a holographic game of dejarik, and entered the cockpit. She was more than a little surprised to find Obi-Wan sitting in the copilot's seat, preparing for takeoff.

"Everything's ready," he informed her as she sat down in the pilot's seat. Rhys made a small sound of approval, igniting the engines and gently lifting the _Falcon_ into the air. As they pulled out of the hangar, Rhys caught a glimpse of Padmé waving in their direction before expertly maneuvering the _Falcon_ to the air above Theed, quickly leaving the city behind as they ascended into space.

* * *

Once their coordinates were set and they were travelling through hyperspace, Rhys decided to contact Aayla – if she was still at the Temple, that is. Her Master, Quinlan Vos, had a habit of accepting strange missions at even stranger times with little to no notice. When Obi-Wan left the cockpit to check on Anakin, Rhys pulled out the holoprojector in the _Falcon's_ main console.

She waited a few moments for the signal to patch through, but was soon rewarded with the small, holographic form of her Twi'lek friend answering the call with her signature, "Secura."

"Hello, Aayla," Rhys said, grinning at the sight of her friend, "I'm on my way back to Coruscant."

The blue tips of Aayla's lekku twitched with excitement, "It's about time! I haven't seen you in months – you'll have to tell me everything about the mission to Naboo!" A sly grin twisted her lips, "You don't happen to know where Obi-Wan is…. do you, Rhys?"

"Why do you want to know?" she asked, mock-suspiciously. Aayla grinned evilly.

"Everyone in the Temple is looking for him, actually," she said, crossing her arms, "Someone released the security footage of him fighting the Sith, and now everyone wants to congratulate him now that the Lothcat is out of the bag."

Rhys winced as she remembered how bad the Temple had been for her after she killed Torra on Nar Oto. Jedi she had never even met before had been coming up to her, eager to make acquaintance with the new Sithkiller. Younglings, padawans, and even fully Knighted Jedi would stare at her with blatant admiration. To combat this, Rhys had thrown herself deeper into her Shadow training, leaving the Temple whenever she could and staying in the 500 Republica apartment.

Obi-Wan would have it worse, if not doubly so, than she did. For one, the attack on Nar Oto hadn't nearly as high profile as the battle for Naboo had been and wasn't as widely known across the Temple. Rhys also didn't have footage depicting her defeat of Torra as Obi-Wan now apparently did, nor did she lose her Master in the attempt. Her heart went out a little to the newly Knighted Jedi – he also didn't really have a good place to escape the wagging tongues of the Temple, and had a new padawan to boot. He wouldn't be able to completely get rid of the crowds like she could, and would now be the talk of the Temple.

"Naturally, when something is supposed to be discreet, the whole Temple knows about it," Rhys cursed under her breath.

"He's going to have it a lot worse than you ever did," Aayla agreed, "Unlike you, Obi-Wan has already become a legend rather than a mystery."

Rhys arched an eyebrow, "Should I be offended by that?"

Aayla snorted, "Are you ever?"

"Good point," Rhys grinned, "Actually, I called you for a different reason than catching up on past missions."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really," Rhys said carefully – Aayla was one of the few people who could read her like a book and discover any secret. "I need to speak with Quinlan, actually."

Aayla's eyes narrowed as she gazed suspiciously at her friend. "Now I know something is definitely wrong… when do you ever have a cordial conversation with my Master?"

Rhys winced as memories of past missions with Aayla and her Master resurfaced. True, she didn't always get along with Quinlan Vos, but he was one of the only Jedi that possessed the power of psychometry, or the ability to discern memories from objects. To truly begin to track the Zabrak Sith, she would have to work with the Kiffar Jedi and endure his maverick ways. One of Aayla's favorite things to tease her friend with was that the reason Rhys didn't like her Master so much was that they were so similar. Rhys vehemently disagreed.

"I need his help tracking something, and all I have is an object that they left behind," Rhys admitted, "As much as we disagree, Quinlan is a very skilled tracker."

Aayla still looked suspicious, but seemed to be placated by her answer. "He's just come back from a mission to the Outer Rim," she said, "I can arrange a meeting when you get back to the Temple, if you'd like."

"That would be wonderful, Aayla, thank you," Rhys said in relief, "See you soon."

"Tell Kenobi that he owes me a spar in the training room," Aayla declared, "He needs to make good on his promise to try and learn Soresu. His fighting style is much more suited to Soresu than Ataru – I don't even know why he decided to pick up that form in the first place."

"I'll be sure to tell him your usual grievance," Rhys rolled her eyes and broke off the connection, the hologram fizzling out. Satisfied that the ship was stable for the time being, Rhys walked back to the main hold where Anakin seemed to be winning the game of dejarik. The older Padawan looked both disappointed and frustrated with his loss, while Anakin was beaming across the table. Obi-Wan sat on the opposite end of the hold, reading a datapad and ignoring the world around him.

Sensing that her padawan needed a bit of cheering up, Rhys sat down next to him. "Would you two like to watch the controls in the cockpit for a little while?" she asked, smiling at their interested faces, "It won't take too long to get back to Coruscant, but I have to do some research and can't leave the cockpit empty. Come and get me if anything happens."

That was all the instruction the padawans needed, scampering off in the direction of the cockpit excitedly. Rhys let out a soft huff of laughter before laying across the bench seat and pulling out her datapad. She pulled up the records for Iridonia, the Zabrak home world, and began reading.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

 **How about that new episode of Rebels, huh? No spoilers, I promise, but I must say this: _Bal kote, darasuum kote,_ _Jorso'ran kando a tome._ _Sa kyr'am nau tracyn kad, Vode an._**

* * *

Aayla Secura was there to meet them at the landing pad, her blue lekku swaying lightly as the _Falcon_ touched down. Rhys was the first to greet her friend, enveloping the Twi'lek in a hug.

"I'm surprised you made it home it _that_ ," Aayla said, craning her neck to get a good look at the _Falcon_ , "This ship looks like it's going to fall apart any minute!"

Rhys rolled her eyes. "Why does everyone think that?!" she asked incredulously.

"Because maybe the ship does look it's going to fall apart?" Obi-Wan called lightly behind them, Anakin at his side. Aayla narrowed her eyes in his direction.

"You owe me, Kenobi," she hissed, "You and me in the sparring ring – tomorrow morning. Don't forget."

Obi-Wan looked slightly panicked as he ushered Anakin into the Temple, ignoring the stares and whispers of the other Jedi around them. Rhys winced in sympathy as several older Jedi stopped him and began to congratulate the overwhelmed new Knight and his padawan. Her thoughts were interrupted by Aayla grasping her arm and steering her towards the stairs that led to the ground level.

"I told Quinlan about your… predicament… and he seemed interested," Aayla said as she dragged her friend enthusiastically, "He just got back from his mission and he's already bored with life at the Temple."

"Ah…" Rhys trailed off, managing to slow her friend and turn back to Tam who was desperately trying to keep up with them, "Tam, take a shuttle back to the apartment – I'll be there in time for dinner." The padawan shot her a grateful look before dashing in the direction of the nearest shuttle, their bags in tow.

Rhys didn't have the chance to protest as Aayla dragged her through the Temple, finally stopping as they neared the Archives. Jocasta Nu flashed them an annoyed glare as they hurriedly passed her desk, scattering a small group of younglings in their wake. Aayla finally stopped in front of a secluded study alcove that was known to be one of Quinlan's favorite napping spots. True enough, the brown-haired Kiffar Master was passed out in the booth, feet propped up on the table and a datapad held up in front of his face to give the illusion that he was actually studying.

Both friends shot each other an identical exasperated look – this was not far beyond the normal for Quinlan Vos. Aayla huffed a sigh, drew herself up, and tapped her Master on the shoulder.

"Master, wake up," Aayla sighed – clearly this wasn't the first time that she had to wake her Master up from one of his naps, "Rhys is here to talk with you."

"Can't you see I'm researching?" the Kiffar mumbled sleepily, not bothering to open his eyes, "Very important…"

"Oh yes, I can see that," Rhys drawled, "Your research must be so important for you to sit here and meditate on it for another hour." Quinlan nodded his head slightly, still not fully awake.

"Hmm… meditate…"

Rhys saw Madam Nu catch sight of the napping Jedi from across the room and begin to stalk angrily towards them. "Right, so if you don't want to get kicked out of the library again, I suggest that you stop "researching" before Madam Nu gets here," she said flatly, turning back to the alcove. That woke Quinlan up fully, throwing his feet from the tabletop and knocking the unread datapad to the floor. The stern librarian was one of the few people who would truly make good on her threats of bodily harm if someone – usually Quinlan – disrespected the rules of her library. It was on more than one occasion that Rhys had seen him being dragged out by his ear after being caught taking his lunch and a nap by Jocasta Nu and given a very harsh lecture, and if there was one thing Quinlan Vos didn't like, it was definitely lectures.

"And what can I do for a lovely lady such as yourself today, sweetheart?" Quinlan purred, propping his head on his hands. Rhys rolled her eyes at the Kiffar's continued crusade to try and seduce her.

"Charming, Vos, as always, but know that if I had any other option right now I wouldn't be standing in front of you." Jocasta still seemed to be advancing, her steely eyes locked on her target.

Aayla sighed heavily and nudged her friend, "I'll go placate her. Force knows the only reason she's put up with Quinlan for all of these years is because she likes me." With that, the Twi'lek stopped the irate librarian, explaining in soothing tones their purpose for meeting with Quinlan.

"You know, I think I like that, Talik," Quinlan mused before throwing his hands over his face dramatically, "Help me, Quinlan, you're my only hope!"

Rhys pursed her lips. "How an irresponsible, reckless, immature laserbrain like you ever had a part in training a good, respectful padawan like Aayla I will never know." Quinlan grinned roguishly as she sat down in the chair opposite him.

"What can I say? Maybe you underestimate my teaching abilities, sweetheart," Quinlan preened, cockily placing his hands behind his head and his booted feet back on the table. Jocasta Nu gave him one last irritated glare before going back to her desk, Aayla returning to the alcove.

"Whatever lies you tell yourself to help you sleep at night, Vos," Rhys replied saccharinely.

"In case you haven't noticed, I sleep just fine – without assistance from anything… or anyone," Quinlan's eyebrows bobbed suggestively.

"Your sad attempts to seduce women aren't getting any better."

"What attempts? My _strategies_ always work great!"

"Like how that mission to Corellia turned out great?"

"I had that under control!"

"Of course you did – after I saved your sorry hide!"

"Maybe you just couldn't resist saving me!"

"Why you… you nerfherder!"

"Uptight harpy!"

"Immature Hutt-spawn!"

"Enough you two!" Aayla had to physically place herself between her irate friend and Master, "You're making the younglings stare!" True enough, the group of younglings nearby were beginning to look interestedly at the two arguing Masters. The two Jedi immediately composed themselves under the glare of the frustrated Twi'lek.

"Is there any place _private_ where we could speak?" Rhys asked slowly, controlling her emotions.

Quinlan cocked an eyebrow. "If I said "my room", would you still kill me?"

Rhys stopped herself from whacking the Kiffar upside the head, instead settling on grabbing his upper arm and dragging him roughly from the Archives, Aayla not far behind. Ignoring his protests, she pulled him over to an empty classroom and shoved him inside.

Quinlan weakly attempted to scold her, "There is no emotion, there is peace!"

Rhys scoffed and closed the door behind Aayla, "Don't try to lecture me on the Code, Quinlan, we all know you don't follow it."

"Excellent point," he responded with a small grin, "But then again, neither do you."

"Listen, Vos, I don't have time to debate with you about which parts of the Code that we prefer to follow," Rhys said hotly, pulling the half of the Zabrak's lightsaber from her pocket and placing on the table in front of him, "I just need you to help me track down the owner of this."

Quinlan, surprisingly, reeled back when she placed the lightsaber before him. "Uh… I don't think that's such a good idea," he protested nervously, eyeing the saber half like it was about to float over and begin attacking him, "I mean, I can feel the bad memories all the way from over here."

"Please, Master?" Aayla begged, "Just this once?"

Quinlan caved, his shoulders slumped in defeat. "Fine, just this once."

The yellow tattoo across his nose crinkled as Quinlan's eyes narrowed. He trailed a few fingers down the side of the metal, his eyes closed in concentration. All of a sudden, his face became a visage of pain as he relived whatever memories the lightsaber held. When he was finished, the Kiffar dropped the metal cylinder back onto the table with heavy breaths.

"Don't ask me to do that again," he asked darkly, staring at the saber in disgust, "That's by far the worst thing that I've ever felt." Rhys nodded in sympathy – the lightsaber created by the Sith Lord was saturated in the Dark Side of the Force, bringing out the worst kinds of fear, anger, and pain.

"What did you find out?" Aayla pressed gently, placing a comforting hand on her Master's shoulder.

"The male Zabrak who made it was definitely a Sith," Quinlan breathed, regaining whatever strength had been sapped from viewing the memories, "I couldn't get any memories of his Master, but it was pretty clear that he was trained as the apprentice."

"Did you get a name?" Rhys asked, her hope rising. If the Zabrak was truly trained by a Sith Lord, there was still a chance that they could follow his trail all the way back to his Master's hiding place.

"Yeah… his name was Darth Maul."

* * *

After sending a quick message detailing Quinlan's findings to Master Yoda, Rhys returned the Falcon to Ivrek, refusing his offer for celebratory drinks in Cocotown. The smuggler had been disappointed when she turned him down, but brightened considerably when she mentioned that she had the _Falcon_ completely retuned on Naboo while it was being repaired so that it wouldn't break down in the near future. When she finally got back to her apartment, Tam was sitting at the table, eagerly digging into a takeout box from Dex's.

"Sorry, Master," he apologized as soon as she sat down, "I didn't think that you'd be back in time, so I ordered takeout. Dex told me to tell you that he sent an extra dessert for you."

"Thank the Force for Dexter Jettster!" she cried, snatching up the small dessert box, opening it to reveal a small pastry topped with candied fruits. Tam grinned enthusiastically as she opened another box that held a fried nerfsteak.

"So… how did your meeting with Master Vos go?" Tam hedged once his Master was in slightly better spirits on account of the food, "You look a little tired."

"Yes, Quinlan Vos often has that effect," she replied, still slightly peeved from their encounter, "We… tend to rub each other the wrong way. He thinks I'm too uptight, I believe him to be selfish and arrogant - we do share fairly similar views when it comes between obeying the Code and completing a mission, though. Aayla made us cooperate to finally discover the origins of the Sith Lord that Obi-Wan killed on Naboo."

Tam leaned forward eagerly, "Was he really a Sith? Are you going to track down the other one?" His Master sighed heavily and rested her head on the back of her chair.

"Yes, he was," she said softly, "But he was only the apprentice… I fear that the Master will be much harder to track down, much less kill. From what Obi-Wan told me, the apprentice was very skilled and nearly killed him."

The boy's excitement seemed to deflate with this new information. "Does that mean that you have to go on a long mission again?"

"Most likely, yes," she answered truthfully, "I'm going to ask Obi-Wan to keep an eye on you while I'm gone, and I want you to help him with Anakin until he gets used to the Temple."

Tam moaned, "I guess that means I have to stay in the Temple…"

Rhys ruffled her padawan's hair, "Not if I can help it. Obi-Wan might want to get away from the Temple for a little while and Anakin might be a little overwhelmed at first. They both might be more comfortable here, away from everything else that's been going on at the moment."

"Sounds good to me!"

"Are you sure you'll be all right while I'm gone?" she asked, concern on her face.

Tam grinned unreservedly, "Yep. What about you Master… are you going to be okay without me? Who's going to save you when you crash another ship or talk you out of betting with pirates?"

"That was one time," she growled, spearing a piece of nerfsteak, "I think I'll be able to manage just fine."

"Whatever you say, Master."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

 **Hello, humans! Thanks so much for all of the amazing reviews - feedback is always welcome!**

 **Robinbird79 - I always wondered that too, until I heard Obi-Wan say it in a Clone Wars episode, so they must have found out somehow. I forget which one, but I think it's the one where he goes to fight Maul and Savage after they kill off a bunch of villagers to get the attention of the Jedi.**

 **CardiacCane - Love the detailed reviews! I'm going to apologize for the wall of text now, but I really want to address all of your comments. Firstly, I agree that Iridonia would be barking up the wrong tree, but it's good to have a bit of research under the belt before a mission. I actually researched Maul's history a ton before writing this - he actually ends up being transported to the garbage dump world of Lotho Minor and descends into madness for more than a decade. Savage Opress finds him, and the rest is Clone Wars history... Secondly, I absolutely adore Ezra Bridger and Rebels. Although they never meet (I haven't planned that far completely, so who really knows) I do plan for some of Rhys' actions to affect Ezra in the future. Thirdly, Although I don't really like the whole idea of Anakin Skywalker as "The Chosen One", I can't deny that his is a tactical genius, even if he is reckless and impulsive. I don't think that winning at dejarik has anything to do with Anakin being the Chosen One, just that even at a young age he was known to be tactically minded - but more on that later. Fourthly, when Aayla is sparring with him, it's her own way of getting him to keep the focus off of his grief. I have no doubt that on the inside Obi-Wan is still devastated, but he has to be strong for those around him, namely for Anakin's sake and training. Thank you so much for your reviews and I'm looking forward to the next chronicle of Sascha Whitestar!**

 **.2016 - Thanks for the reviews! :)))**

 **Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't own Star Wars... blah, blah, blah...**

* * *

"Retrace the footsteps of Maul, you must," Master Yoda said firmly, "Learn more of our enemy, we may, by walking in his footsteps."

Rhys agreed with her former Master – there had to be some hidden connection between the Zabrak that would lead the Jedi to the discovery of the other Sith. If Quinlan was right and Maul was just the apprentice, it was only a matter of time before the Sith Lord covered his tracks and found himself a new apprentice.

"I would like to speak with Nute Gunray," she announced, looking between the members of the Council to gauge their reactions, "I believe that he may also have a connection to the remaining Sith Lord."

"Are you certain that the Neimoidians were taking orders from a higher power?" Ki-Adi Mundi asked, folding his hands together.

Rhys nodded resolutely, "Absolutely, Master. Neimoidians aren't exactly known for their bold planning strategies. They would definitely need to be organized by someone far more powerful that could have been Maul or his Master pulling at the strings." The Council fell silent as they processed this new information.

"Nute Gunray has already been turned over to the Senate," Mace finally said, "It is no longer in our jurisdiction to interrogate him. It's no longer our affair."

"With all due respect, Master Windu, it is very much our affair," Rhys said shortly, crossing her arms, "The return of the Sith is well within our jurisdiction and that makes Nute Gunray a very valuable witness in this investigation!" The two Jedi stubbornly glared at each other, neither willing to back down.

Silence reigned in the Council Room until Plo Koon spoke up, "Before he was turned over to the Senate, Nute Gunray was interrogated by Master Tiin, Master Dooku, and myself. None of us found him to be harboring any deception or information concerning Maul before we turned him over to the Senate to be tried."

Rhys' heart fell – she was sure that Nute Gunray would have at least seen the face of his employer, but it seemed as if this new generation of Sith were being extremely cautious. If the Sith had truly changed from the brazen, bloodthirsty warriors of old, finding them would be even more difficult. Like Master Yoda had said in the past, being unable to see the Dark Side made it near impossible to detect its presence among the trillions of life-firms in the galaxy. How were the Jedi supposed to guard against the Sith if they couldn't even sense when they were about to strike?

"Very well, Masters," she acquiesced, her voice not louder than a whisper.

"Find the source of the assassin, you must," Yoda rasped, "Follow the will of the Force, you must, to track down this assassin's origin. Assign Quinlan Vos to this mission, we shall. Aid you in your mission, he will."

Rhys curbed her annoyance and frustration as she bowed respectfully, "Yes, Masters."

"May the Force be with you, Master Talik," Windu said as she turned to leave the room.

Tam saw the look on his Master's face as she left the Council Chambers and immediately knew that the request to speak with Gunray had not gone her way. She strode angrily into the elevator, the padawan barely making it inside before the doors closed behind him. He could feel the frustration coming from her in waves, then slowly receding as she began to calm herself.

"Are they sending you on another mission, Master?" he hedged, waiting until she was completely calm to speak.

Rhys sighed heavily, "Yes… Quinlan and I are being tasked with finding the trail of the Zabrak that Obi-Wan killed on Naboo. I believed that Gunray could hold the key to his connection with the other Sith and ultimately his hiding place, but the Council didn't agree."

"Why not?" Tam asked, his curious nature compelling him to ask before he could stop himself.

His Master sighed again, letting her breath out slowly. "Because they had already interrogated him and didn't find anything to indicate that he was in league with Maul. But how can they say that when they have no way of seeing the Dark Side? Their ignorance of the Dark side makes it impossible for them to hunt it out – in fact, it's one of my biggest grievances with the Council," she said, her frustration with the Council once again making itself known.

"Oh…" he responded, not sure what to say to calm his irritated Master, "So… how are you going to find the Sith, Master?"

"I don't know, Tam," she answered truthfully, "But I know where to start."

* * *

Quinlan grinned like a madman when he opened the door to his and Aayla's rooms to see his new partner standing sternly with her arms crossed.

"Hello, milady," he said suavely, leaning against the doorframe, "You're not about to take me up on my offers, are you?" Rhys rolled her eyes and pushed him aside, clearing the way into the living room.

"Not now, not ever, Vos," she said brusquely, sinking into the one armchair that didn't seem to be overflowing with clutter.

"You're no fun, sweetheart," he drawled, clearing a spot on the couch opposite her, "All work and no play makes for dull company."

Rhys ignored him and gazed at the messy room around her – the half of the kitchen and the path leading to Aayla's room seemed to be the only islands of cleanliness. She shuddered to think of what Quinlan's actual room looked like in comparison to the mess outside his closed door. "Once again, I'm astounded how Aayla has actually lived with you all these years."

Quinlan grinned and took a swig from an open bottle, "I know, right? The Council would have kicked me out years ago if it wasn't for her."

"I believe that they're willing to put up with your… peculiarities… on account of your mission record and abilities," she replied, "For the time being, so am I." Quinlan looked at her suspiciously before taking another swig from the bottle. Rhys was now almost positive that it contained alcohol.

"What is this, a truce?" he drawled.

"No, Quinlan, I just really want to be your best friend in the whole wide galaxy," she snapped sarcastically, "Listen, I'm not going to be spending the next however long confined in a ship with you if we're constantly going to be at each other's throats. It's honestly not worth the distraction, so I'm willing to put the past behind us for now and get this over with."

Quinlan looked at her suspiciously for a moment longer before breaking into a lopsided smile. "Deal!" he proclaimed, extending a hand, "You won't try to kill me, and I'll try to get you to loosen up and have some fun!"

Rhys shook his offered hand, sealing the deal, "Your definition of fun and mine are two very different things."

"I know, I'm offering to change that!"

"Can you focus for just one second, Quinlan?" Rhys asked, exasperated, "I need you to take another look at Maul's lightsaber." Quinlan visibly balked as she placed the lightsaber half on the table between them.

"Do you just carry that thing around with you wherever you go?" he asked, staring at the severed hilt with blatant disgust, "It's a kriffing Sith Lord's lightsaber, not a datapad… or whatever else you carry around in your pockets."

Although Rhys did agree with Quinlan that the lightsaber's Dark Side aura was sickening, but they had no choice but to use the valuable piece of evidence that they were given. "I've been meditating on it," she explained, "I don't like this thing any more than you do, but we're going to have to use it to pick up Maul's trail."

"Ugh…" he groaned, "Touching that thing isn't really high on my "like-to-touch" list, you know. In fact, it's just under a Hutt's hookah – which I am never doing again, by the way."

"Come on, Quinlan, you don't even have to go very far back," she wheedled, "All we need to do is find out what happened to his ship, since the one he used to get to Naboo was stolen. It'll be a piece of cake, I promise."

Quinlan looked at her skeptically, but finally caved. "Fine, I'll do it. Is there anything specific that I'm looking for?"

Rhys shook her head. "All I need is for you to keep your mind open to me so that I can help you sift through the memories. I'll let you know if I see anything." Quinlan nodded silently, steeling himself for the sickening sensation of the Dark Side that he was about to endure. He placed his fingers on the end of the severed hilt and began calling forth the memories.

 _Maul stood over the melting pit, sadistic delight coursing through him as he rained down sparks on the young Jedi hanging from the nozzle beneath him –_

 _His savage elation as a probe droid returned, bringing news of the fugitives trying to escape from him –_

 _Stopping to refuel on a small moon before he could reach Tatooine, killing the owner of the tanker that was trying to swindle him and mocking him under his breath… killing him because he was Darth Maul and he could for no reason at all –_

 _Stealing a small shuttle from a band of merchants, slaying all aboard their ship before stashing his own vessel in a containment unit and flying off into the night to obey his Master's summons –_

"Stop!" Rhys cried, both she and Quinlan opening their eyes, "The last one… see if you can get any more from it." Quinlan complied and pulled them both back into the memories.

 _Maul sneered at the Bith merchants unloading their cargo of Ramordian silks into the containment units below him, completely unaware that their stupid, insignificant lives were about to end. His Master had told him to be discreet, to hide his ship on this useless trade stop on his way from Coruscant. Maul wanted desperately to please his Master, but the Dark Side within him begged for the release that killing granted him. Once his own vessel was safely locked away, Maul let the Dark Side control him, cutting through the hapless merchants like they were nothing. In a matter of seconds they were all dead, and he was flying away on their own ship…_

"That's enough," Rhys said, ridding herself of Maul's residual hate that lingered in his memories, Quinlan doing the same as he drew away from the severed hilt.

"Now we know that he hid his own ship, but we don't know where," Quinlan said, subdued by what he had seen and taking another large swig from his bottle.

Rhys turned over the memory in her mind, examining it from every possible angle to try and get any information that would give away Maul's hiding place. The Bith merchants weren't uncommon, as they were found all over the galaxy. The containers themselves had no particular identifying marks other than their numbering sequence – Maul's ship was stashed in box 435C, one among many otherwise identical looking blue boxes. The containment yard that housed the storage boxes had no distinguishing features, appearing to be as utilitarian as all others of its kind. Still… there had to be something…

Rhys' face lit up as she came upon the answer, "Ramordian silks!" Quinlan looked puzzled as she explained, "The merchants were storing boxes of Ramordian silks! Think about it… Ramordia is right off of the main hyperspace route from Coruscant, and from there it's a straight shot to Naboo. He must have hidden his ship in one of their storage yards."

"So… Ramordia, huh?" Quinlan slurred, finally feeling the effects of the alcohol in his system. Rhys stared at him, dumbfounded that he could fathom being drunk at a time like this.

"Yes, Quinlan," she replied tightly, standing up and calling Maul's saber back into her pocket, "We're leaving for Ramordia in the morning, so don't get too hungover."

The Kiffar grinned lopsidedly, beginning to sway in his chair, "I don't ever get too hungover… only drunk!"

Rhys closed the door behind her as she left the Kiffar Jedi to his inebriation. Quinlan was known to be a bit of a drinker, but had a remarkable tolerance to most kinds of intoxicants and could out-drink most beings. That fact alone had earned him prestige on his undercover missions, earning rapport with most criminals. It wasn't against the Code, per say, but there were many Jedi who believed excessive drinking to be the gateway to deadlier attachments such as spice or death sticks. Rhys didn't care either way – they were all necessary evils, especially when one was posing as a bounty hunter or pirate to get information. Many a criminal's tongue had been loosened by an offer to pay for another round of drinks.

As she left the Temple, Rhys' thoughts turned back to her report to the Council and to the subject of Nute Gunray. She knew that he was being held in the high security cells of the Coruscant prison, and as a Jedi she could easily gain access to him and press him for information. Her mind was torn between two decisions: on one hand, she could very easily interrogate Nute Gunray, but that would mean going against the Council's orders. Though Rhys often fought them on issues concerning the Code, she still felt uneasy about defying them, even though she would be doing it underhandedly and not blatantly as Quinlan often did. On the other hand, she could just let Gunray go, but could miss out on having a crucial piece of the puzzle that she needed to hunt down the Sith.

It only took another heartbeat before she decided, hailing a speeder to take her deeper into Coruscant's teeming city center.

* * *

The guards escorted her right through the prison's main doors, one glance at her lightsabers enough for them to know who she was. Rhys was thankful that they didn't ask questions, just directed her to Gunray's cell and left her to her task, standing away from the orange ray shield respectfully. Rhys was surprised to see the changes in the Neimoidian – he was no longer dressed in extravagant robes, instead sporting an orange prison jumpsuit, and was no longer wearing his large headdress, exposing his bald head.

"I already told you what I know, Jedi," he said, nervousness seeping into his voice. Rhys smirked – once a coward, always a coward. If she didn't know any better, she wouldn't have believed that this shrinking worm had ordered the subjugation of her planet and the capture of her sister.

"This meeting isn't to discuss your trial, Gunray," she said curtly, "You deserve to be locked up for the rest of your cowardly life, but you're going to give me some information first."

"I told you, I don't know!" he squealed, backpedaling, "I never saw his face!"

"Whose face?" she pressed.

"I can't remember!" the Neimoidian wailed as he cringed, "I don't remember anything about our meetings other than my orders!"

Rhys thought for a little while, her finger on her lips. Gunray had just verified that he was taking orders from someone, confirming her suspicions. Unfortunately, it looked like his employer had wiped all memory of their meetings from his mind. There was a chance that those memories were still buried in his subconscious, but there was only one way to retrieve them. However, it was very frowned upon by the Council should a Jedi use their powers to break into minds for their own purposes. It was one of the worst things a Jedi could do, often leading them to other Dark uses of the Force. But what choice did she have? Rhys gathered her strength and, without warning, dove into Gunray's mind.

 _A hooded figure towered above him in the hologram, sneering in his displeasure. Gunray quaked in his shoes as the figure continued to outline his plans for Naboo. He seemed to be very displeased with the news that the Queen had escaped him. Gunray's terror grew to new heights when the hooded figure introduced the savage-looking tattooed Zabrak, explaining that since he had failed to retrieve the Queen, his apprentice would do so. The hooded figure gave him one more instruction, the hologram fizzling out before he could give his reply._

 _"Yes, Lord Sidious."_

All at once, her control slipped and the memories began to pour through Rhys' connection through the Force. She felt the cold begin to wrap itself around her own mind, icy flames threatening to burn everything in their path. It was… _exhilarating_ to be holding the chains that bound the flames, to have power over another. Strangely enough, she _liked_ the feeling.

Rhys pulled away from the Neimoidian's mind, shocked by the information he yielded and the fact that he gave little to no resistance against her. She staggered slightly, horrified that she had actually done the very thing she had been warned against her entire life. She quickly calmed herself and turned her thoughts to the new information. Lord Sidious… that bit of information presented yet another slew of possibilities. Sidious could be merely a middleman, ferrying instruction back and forth to hide the true identity of the mastermind, but there was definitely the chance that he could be much more than that. However, no amount of information would change the fact that the Council would be furious when they found out that she had directly disobeyed them to interrogate the Neimoidian, and the methods she had used to retrieve the memories. She could be expelled from the Order if the Council ever found out, or worse.

Nute Gunray was still dazed when she called the guards to escort her back out. _I'll have to collect more evidence before I show it to the Council,_ Rhys thought as she left the prison. _I can only hope that Ramordia will have more answers…_

* * *

 **Please review!**


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

 **Holy new Rebels episode! Sorry... I'm kind of in love with the crew of the Ghost. Anyway, thank you so much for all of you that still read, follow, and review my stories! Consider this a shout out to all of my new followers this week!**

 **Robinbird79 - I know, I love Quinlan too... I can say right now that I think that he just gets better after he's had a few to drink! I'll be sure to incorporate your idea and thanks for the review!**

 **Disclaimer: Do I own Star Wars? No... no I do not. Please don't forget to review!**

* * *

Obi-Wan looked absolutely exhausted when he opened his door, sighing in relief once he realized that it was just Rhys. He quickly ushered her in, hastily closing the door behind her and nearly clipping the bag she was carrying with her.

"It's not easy being the idol of the Temple, is it, Obi-Wan?" she teased, sinking into an armchair. Obi-Wan made an annoyed face – clearly being the new Sithkiller of the Temple wasn't his favorite thing in the world. Not that Rhys didn't blame him… she had already seen countless younglings, padawans, and even fully Knighted Jedi clustered around datapads containing the security footage of Obi-Wan's fight. The young Jedi had now officially made it to a legendary status.

"Anakin feeds on the attention," he said tiredly, rubbing at his face, "It feels like I was trying to calm him down for half of the night, not to mention all of the people trying to congratulate me at all hours of the night. I eventually had to just turn my comm off and lock the doors."

Rhys gave her friend a sympathetic smile - he didn't look like he had gotten much sleep with all that was on his mind. "I can't say anything for Anakin's excitement, but I know that the crowding will go down some after a little while," she pulled two lidded cups from her bag, offering one to Obi-Wan. "Mine is caf, yours is tea," she explained as he gratefully accepted the warm drink, "Although why you don't like caf is beyond me."

"What's the point of an acquired taste?" he asked pointedly, taking a sip of his tea.

She waved her hand dismissively, "It's really the caffeine that I care about at this point in the morning." Rhys drank deeply from her cup, savoring the heat that ran down her throat, "Actually, I didn't come here just to check up on you… I was actually wondering if I could trade you a favor."

Obi-Wan cocked an eyebrow, "A trade? Now I'm interested…"

"Well, my terms are thus," a wry smile pulled at her lips, "You and Anakin can stay in the apartment while I'm gone, so long as you keep an eye on Tam and get him to his lessons. I also wouldn't mind you handing him over to Aayla to work on his defense occasionally – his single-bladed defense is sorely lacking. My only condition is that you don't let Anakin tinker with any of my devices or intentionally break anything." Obi-Wan winced – his new padawan had already earned a reputation for breaking mechanical things apart simply to satisfy his curiosity about how they worked.

"I promise that I won't let him destroy anything," he vowed, holding one hand up, "And I won't let Tam fall behind in his studies."

"Good," she said, standing and grabbing her bag, "Well, I have a ship to prepare, and as I recall, you also have a sparring session with Aayla that you probably don't want to miss."

"You have no idea…"

Rhys laughed, "Oh, I understand very well – who do you think sparred with her while all of you were on missions and Quinlan left her behind for his extended missions? She means well... you'd do well to accept her offer of a painful distraction while it lasts." Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer when he was stopped by the appearance of Anakin, rubbing his eyes sleepily, his hair and pajamas rumpled. Rhys suppressed a giggle at his bedraggled entrance, the boy's short padawan braid kinked in an awkward direction from where he had been sleeping on it.

"Good morning, Anakin," she said kindly as he flopped on the couch next to his Master. Anakin mumbled something incoherent in reply. "I've got to leave on a mission, so you and Obi-Wan can stay in the apartment with Tam while I'm gone." Anakin brightened visibly, sitting up a little straighter.

"Really? That's so wizard!"

Rhys smiled as she opened the door, "Just don't break anything on purpose, alright? I have a feeling that I'll come back to you and my padawan wreaking havoc on your poor Master."

"We won't, I promise!"

* * *

Aayla and Tam were there to see their Masters off and were waiting in the hangar by the _StarRover_ when Rhys arrived. Quinlan, naturally, was nowhere to be seen. She could sense that he wasn't on the ship, but was definitely close by. _How in Malachor am I going to survive this mission?_ Rhys thought to herself as she caught sight of the Kiffar Jedi swaggering across the hangar towards the padawans.

"Obi-Wan seemed very excited about your sparring session later," Rhys called as she neared her Twi'lek friend. Tam cringed in sympathy – Aayla Secura was heralded as one of the best upcoming duelists and lessons with her usually ended up with him sporting several small lightsaber burns where she had penetrated his dual-bladed defense. Obi-Wan, skilled as he was, would definitely be feeling the after-effects of his sparring session with her.

"He'd better be," Aayla drawled, "He owes me one."

Quinlan, the master of timing that he was, chose that moment to approach the group, swinging his bag childishly without abandon. Thankfully, he showed no symptoms of his previous night's drinking binge, but then again, it wasn't unheard of for him to regularly function with one drink or so already in the tank. The Kiffar was dressed in his usual unorthodox uniform consisting of a dark brown sleeveless tunic that displayed the yellow tattoos on his arms. All in all, Quinlan appeared to be as scruffy and roguish as ever, a feature made more prominent by the lopsided grin that was ever present on his face.

"So… do I get to drive this time?" he purred seductively, placing a hand on Rhys' shoulder. She rolled her eyes and stiffly brushed him off.

"That's got to be the worst idea I've ever heard! I'll let you drive my ship when Zillo Beasts come back to life, which'll happen right after I become elected Chancellor and meet with Lott Dod for tea," she huffed, shooting a glare in his direction. Quinlan groaned dramatically, placing a hand over his chest.

"You wound me, sweetheart, really," he proclaimed, "Right in the heart! You know, one of these days you'll make me lose my focus!"

"Oh, that would be tragic, wouldn't it? The great Quinlan Vos finally losing his focus!"

"Your words, not mine, sweetheart. I happen to be a master of focus!"

Aayla once again put herself in between her Master and her friend before they went at each other again. Tam followed the blue Twi'lek's lead, pulling aside his Master to say their goodbyes.

Rhys shot one more deadly look over her padawan's shoulder before facing him, "I'm not sure if both of us are going to survive this mission," she growled.

"Just focus on what you need to do, Master," he replied simply. Rhys drew back and looked at her padawan.

"When did you get so wise?"

The padawan blushed, "Just repeating what you told me. You tell me to be focused often enough." Rhys ruffled her padawan's hair fondly before enveloping him in a hug. Once again she was reminded how young he was – only twelve, which was far too young to lose his Master. She promised herself that she would stay safe for him and not take any unnecessary risks that could get her killed.

"I'll be back soon," she promised softly, enveloping him in a hug, "May the Force be with you, padawan."

"May the Force be with you, Master," he replied, then hedged a look behind him at the Kiffar Jedi swinging his travel bag around as if he was fighting imaginary opponents, "I have a feeling you're going to need the Force with you on this one…"

Rhys sent her padawan a mental swell of reassurance as she shouldered her bag. "I'll take whatever guidance I can get at this point." She quickly walked up the ramp of the _StarRover_ and giving one last wave to her padawan and friend disappeared inside the ship, closing the ramp behind her. After she dropped her bag off in her usual cabin, Rhys went to the cockpit and found Quinlan sprawled across the pilot's seat with his feet crossed on top of the main controls, his bag thrown haphazardly in the other chair.

"Move, now," she growled, pointing her thumb to the copilot's chair. The Kiffar Jedi raised his hands in surrender and stood up, dramatically gesturing for her to take her place in front of the controls. Rhys rolled her eyes as she sat down, shaking her head in annoyance as Quinlan swung his bag around before leaving the cockpit, probably to claim one of the other three remaining cabins for himself. She expertly piloted the _StarRover_ out of the hangar and into the air around Coruscant, maneuvering through the congested traffic lanes. She had just left the planet's atmosphere when Quinlan reentered the cockpit, resting his arms on the top of her chair.

"You know, those cabins are pretty small," he said slyly, "I don't know if there's going to be room enough for both of us."

Rhys discreetly readied the StarRover to make the jump to lightspeed, inputting the coordinates for the Ramordia system as she tried to hide the mischievous smile that crept on her face. "Well, I hope that you don't find the quarters too confining, Quinlan," she smirked, a wicked light in her brown eyes, "From what I hear, you don't like being in… _tight_ situations."

Quinlan moved slightly to the side of the chair, placing a hand on her armrest all the while leaning in closer. "Maybe we can figure out something to do about it… maybe talk about how these close quarters pertain to you and me…"

"Oh, we can talk about it," she purred, her face inches from his. Quinlan's face managed to register the slightest bit of confusion before Rhys pulled the acceleration with a wicked grin on her face, the engines roaring as they made the jump to hyperspace. The Kiffar Jedi was completely unprepared for the sudden burst of speed and was sent flying into the back of the ship, eventually slamming into the closed door leading to the main hold. "Not going to happen, Vos!" Rhys could be heard shouting from her command console, followed by laughter.

She leaned back in her seat, placing her hands casually behind her head as she watched the blue and white streaks of hyperspace pass them by. Quinlan could be heard swearing violently in the back of the ship as he got up and stormed back to the cockpit, knocking into the walls as he struggled to regain his balance. He finally heaved himself back into the cockpit, breathing heavily and nursing a new bump on the back of his head as he dropped heavily into the copilot's chair. Rhys returned a smirk in response to his glare.

"You did that on purpose," he spat, angrily rubbing at the back of his head.

"I'm sorry, did I make you lose your focus?" she said saccharinely, "I thought you were a _master_ of focus!" The Kiffar mumbled something unintelligible then sank deeper into his chair, sulking as she laughed again.

He continued to pout for several minutes, resolutely glaring at the streaks of hyperspace in front of him. "I almost wish that Kenobi had been assigned to this mission with me," he grumbled, crossing his arms, "He wouldn't throw me to the back of the ship… on purpose."

"You know Obi-Wan doesn't tolerate you any more than I do," she reminded him, "Nor is he overly fond of your blatant breaches of the Code." Quinlan shrugged in grudging agreement.

"True, but he blushes easier, and it's adorable."

* * *

Rhys left Quinlan in the cockpit with the Kiffar's solemn oath that he wouldn't touch the controls, break anything, or use her datapads under several earnest threats of bodily harm if he did. She was more than a little nervous about leaving Quinlan alone at all in any place on her ship, but she would have to trust him with some responsibilities sooner or later. He was childish and reckless, yes, but loyal to a fault and had quite an impressive track record of successful missions. At the moment, however, her need to meditate outweighed her concern for her ship. Rhys was still haunted by her interrogation of Gunray, and her brush with the Dark Side to pry the information from his mind.

This wasn't the first time that she had ever been tempted into the flaming embrace of the Dark Side, but it was the one that haunted her the most. The guilt of what she had done ate away at her soul, pushing her ever closer to the whispering voices that beckoned to her to follow them down that dark path. The guilt over invading Gunray's mind was nothing compared to remembering the exhilarating she had felt, and how much she had liked it. Rhys shook her head and released her emotions and worries into the Force, pushing it away for another time.

She entered the cabin she had previously claimed and took out Maul's lightsaber from its wrappings. Over the past few days, it had become an object of focus for her, pinpointing her thoughts and allowing her to meditate deeper. Quinlan had requested that she wrap it in some sort of cloth, as its dark aura made him nauseous when it was too exposed for a long period of time. Rhys could feel the darkness seeping from the severed hilt, but it didn't seem to bother her nearly as much as it did Quinlan. She didn't think about it too much, chalking the other Jedi's discomfort to his negative readings from the object. In any case, it allowed her to meditate without interference from Quinlan.

However, meditating over the lightsaber half was getting her nowhere. She still saw much of the same things – the voices in shadow, the dark tunnel lit by a red light, and the moment when Maul's lightsaber was cut in half by Obi-Wan. Her visions were being more unhelpful than usual, clouded by the heavy influence of the Dark Side that lingered around the hilt. It was time to try a different approach, seeing as Quinlan expressed such a deep disgust for using his powers to see the memories embedded in the metal.

Rhys placed the lightsaber on the floor of the cabin and began to concentrate, levitating the metal cylinder at eye level. She began to gently take it apart, taking notice of the remarkable workmanship as she went. Maul had clearly been very skilled with mechanics, improving upon the usual model of the lightsaber. Obi-Wan must have nearly severed the lightsaber at the exact center – Rhys could see where Maul had inserted a mechanism that would have split his saberstaff into two separate lightsabers. She found the idea very intriguing; it would certainly serve as a surprise tactic to suddenly switch between fighting with a two-bladed style and that of a saberstaff.

As she continued to dismantle Maul's lightsaber, Rhys discovered that in addition to an orthodox ignition switch Maul had also created a small device that would only allow the blade to be ignited through the use of the Force. The method was ingenious – the Zabrak had placed a small cap over the primary ignition source that could be slid back into place with a simple Force-push that would be impossible for a non-Force wielder or any other opponent to discover without any prior knowledge of the device. It would also be impossible to ignite the red blade with the outer button while the preventer was in place, which made it very ideal for undercover missions. Rhys could honestly justify making these modifications in her own lightsabers.

When Rhys finally exposed the kyber crystal at the heart of the lightsaber, she couldn't help but gasp in amazement at the vivid crimson color. Rhys had seen many kyber crystals in her time and all had their own pulsing aura, but this one was particularly breathtaking. Jedi were taught that the Sith's synthetic crystals couldn't measure up to their own gathered crystals in beauty and Force-sensitivity, but just for a moment Rhys thought that this one was abnormally captivating and powerful. The crystal cast the entire room in eerie red light as it rotated in the air, casting jagged shadows where it lit upon the suspended metal pieces floating around it. Rhys gazed at the crystal another moment longer before reassembling the lightsaber, careful to recreate it exactly as it had been before.

As soon as she set the last metal ring in place, Quinlan barged into her room, causing her to jump in surprise and drop the lightsaber to the floor with a resounding clang. Quinlan didn't even have the decency to look repentant, instead fixing the abandoned hilt with a glare of disgust. Rhys placed her fingers on her temples as she attempted to calm her frantically beating heart from its scare.

"Can you please learn to knock?" she asked wearily, "I don't think that my heart could stand another shock like that."

Quinlan waggled his eyebrows, "Maybe I'm just hoping to catch you doing something interesting for once when you're all alone in here."

Rhys rolled her eyes and stood up, placing her hands on her hips, "What do you want, Vos? You had better not be telling me that you broke something in my ship."

"I find your lack of faith in me to be disturbing," he leaned against the door frame, crossing his arms confidently, "You should be glad to know that I didn't actually break anything on your ship." She narrowed her eyes suspiciously – she didn't altogether believe that Quinlan was telling the truth, but would eventually find out if he did break something vital. "We're coming up on Ramordia."

"Good," Rhys said as she pushed past him and entered the cockpit. True enough, the StarRover was coming out of hyperspace directly in front of Ramordia. She scanned the cockpit for visible signs of anything broken, but thankfully could find nothing. Quinlan seemed to be telling the truth.

The other Jedi flopped into the copilot's seat, staring out at the blue-ish green planet with a sigh. "So, where to first?" he asked, looking over the scans of the large planet wearily, "There's got to be hundreds of storage facilities all over the planet, not to mention in the capitol city alone."

Rhys shook her head, "No, the Ramordian silk merchants have their own private export station outside the capitol city. We'll start there, then expand our search if we don't find anything there."

Quinlan nodded. "Let's get this over with, then."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

 **Holy frickin' Rebels episode! That's all I gotta say... I literally just watched it and it totally blew my mind! Okay, fangirl moment over. Thank you so much for the awesome reviews!**

 **Robinbird79 - Close, but no cigar... yet. You have no idea how much I enjoy reading your theories about what happens in the next few chapters. As for telling someone, I suppose that there is a time and place for that, but it should be coming soon-ish.**

 **CardiacCane - You know, I don't know how she does either... he would have been orange goo if it had been me :) Thanks for the advice - I actualy haven't read the new Ahsoka book yet, but I really, really want to. It's kind of hard to get any new books when the city library is smaller than my own home library. I have, however, looked up the barest bones of the plot, and I'm really liking it!**

 **.2017 - Thanks for the review!**

 **As always, I encourage all of you new followers out there to review! Disclaimer: Inconceivable! I don't own Star Wars!**

* * *

Rhys tried to keep her frustration from showing as she and Quinlan left the ninety-third private export station without any possible leads as to where Maul's ship was. Not only did all of the cargo boxes look very much alike, they were also stored together in the thousands. It would take a lifetime to search through them all, not to mention all of the other storage facilities located at the export station.

"This is taking forever!" Quinlan complained as they boarded the air train that would take them through the city to the other storage yards, "We've been on this planet for almost a month, and we still aren't any closer to finding that kriffing ship!"

"Be patient," she scolded, "Did you think that this was going to be an easy mission, that we'd be back at the Temple in a few days?"

"No," he huffed, slumping in his seat sullenly, "I just don't want to be stuck here wandering around in these stupid cargo boxes for the rest of my life. It's _boring_ and I don't cope well with boredom."

Rhys rolled her eyes, "Fine. What would be less boring to you?" She immediately regretted asking the question as the Kiffar's face broke into a lopsided grin.

"Well… if I remember correctly, there happens to be a cantina somewhere around here…"

"Absolutely not." Quinlan sat up, fully hooked on the idea of going to the cantina.

"Why not? It's got food, drink, and women, for Force's sake! What more could any person need to kill boredom?"

Rhys resolutely looked past him at the quickly passing city around them. There was absolutely no way that she would go with Quinlan to a cantina willingly – who knew what sort of trouble he could get them both in even when left there for a short period of time? Yes, the mission was rather boring at the moment, but if it wasn't then every other Jedi would have signed up for it. She could sense how close they were to locating Maul's ship – if they gave up now, they might never find it again. _I could always leave him at the bar,_ she thought. The more that Rhys toyed with the idea the more she seemed to like it. Quinlan would be happy to relieve some of his boredom, and Rhys would be happy to have some time away from her infuriating partner, especially after being in close proximity for the past month.

"All right," she said flatly. Quinlan seemed shocked that she had actually agreed to his proposal, "You can get off on the next stop while I go to the next storage yard."

The Kiffar looked like he had just won the Corellian jackpot, "You're serious?"

"More so than usual, yes."

His eyes narrowed, "This isn't some diabolical scheme to strand me on this planet?"

"Would you rather come with me?" Quinlan seemed to weigh his options for several moments, then shrugged.

"Sounds good to me!"

"Just don't get yourself into trouble – I don't want to have to explain to the Council how you ended up in the middle of a bar fight."

* * *

Rhys reveled in the silence that Quinlan's absence brought her as she walked up to the main offices of the storage yard. This one seemed to be bigger than most, owned by a galaxy-wide trade guild that had its roots in exporting Ramordian silks. A scruffy middle-aged human man sat behind the front desk, flicking through a datapad absently with his feet on the desk.

"Whaddya want?" he growled, taking his feet from the surface and looking in her direction.

"Are you the foreman of this storage facility?" she asked bluntly.

"Yeah," he answered, "I'm the foreman."

"I'm looking for any news about the murder of several Bith merchants in a storage yard like this one," she stated, her tone leaving no room for questions, "Do you have any information pertaining to these deaths?" The man narrowed his eyes suspiciously, placing his datapad on the desk.

"What's it to you, lady? Talkin' doesn't come cheap, ya know…" Rhys scoffed and strode powerfully to the desk, now standing directly across from him. Briefly, she sensed his flicker of fear before it was smothered by bravado.

"I don't have time to deal with this sort of nonsense," she growled, "And it's been a rather trying day for me. The question was a fairly simple one, but for your sake I'll repeat it: has there been any murders committed in your facility?"

The foreman, sufficiently cowed, gave a slight nod, "Uh… 'bout two week ago, ma'am, there was. Coupla merchants says they found some bodies or somethin' out in the stacks. We gets all sorts a things out here, so I didn't think to report it, ma'am." Rhys' spirit was bolstered considerably – this could be what she had been looking for!

"Can you take me to where they found the bodies?" she prodded. The man gave another quick nod and jumped out of his chair to show her the way. He expertly navigated the endless stacks of storage containers for several minutes before stopping at one of the landing pads located in the stacks. Rhys would have been unable to distinguish it from any other landing pad except for several long scorch marks burned into the walls and ground.

"This be it, ma'am," the foreman said nervously, eyeing the nearest blackened scorch mark with apprehension.

"Thank you, foreman," she replied, walking alone into the center of the landing pad, "I shall let you know if I need any further assistance." The man gave one last nod before turning back into the columns of boxes.

Rhys could feel the heavy influence of the Dark Side in the air – Maul had definitely been here and killed the Bith merchants. The Force was still rife with the turmoil that murder caused, the voices of the slain calling out for justice against their murderer. Although the scene had been cleared of the bodies and debris, nothing could ever truly take the lightsaber burns out of the ground. The Force prompted her to pull Maul's lightsaber out of her pocket, and she did, feeling the tug on the cold metal cylinder that pulled her into another vision.

 _From her point of view in the center of the clearing, she could see Maul skulking atop the cargo boxes, dropping several stories to surprise the unwary Bith merchants. He cut through them mercilessly, raptured in his ecstasy created through the Dark Side at the murders. When he was finally sated, the Zabrak stowed his ship in their empty cargo box before lifting it with the Force and placing it on top of the nearest stack-_

Rhys opened her eyes to gaze upwards as she searched for the box containing Maul's ship. She combed the columns for a moment until her gaze lighted upon a familiar blue cargo box mounted at the top of its stack. _There you are_ , she thought as she felt the Dark Side faintly emanating from the unit. Rhys quickly commandeered a nearby lift to take her up to the level of the blue unit and broke the lock with the Force.

The side slid back to reveal a sinister-looking black ship lodged in the far corner of the large box. For a moment, Rhys thought back to how the Sith lord had effortlessly lifted the large container into the air and on top of the mountain of boxes. His strength was impressive, at was certain. After walking around the ship, Rhys decided to bring Quinlan back to have a look at it and see what memories he could glean from the metal. It was unlike any model she had ever before seen – Maul's skill with mechanics had served him well in the creation of his transport.

She took one last look at the black ship, then closed the sliding door behind her. She would return with Quinlan, for now the hunt was on.

* * *

Rhys took the air train back to the stop that Quinlan had gotten off at and began searching for her wayward partner. Like herself, the Kiffar had an uncanny ability to hide his Force-signature, which made him rather difficult to track. After wandering around the streets in the vicinity for a little while, Rhys began to inspect the nearby cantinas.

After searching through several shabby bars, Rhys finally found Quinlan drinking heavily in a neon-lit dance club surrounded by several Twi'lek, Zeltron, Togruta, and human women that were clearly dancers at the club, all scantily clad in colorful costumes. She made her way over to the boisterous Jedi, dodging patrons, dancers, and sideways looks from several men.

"So you finally decided to join me!" he slurred as she approached him. In his drunken state Quinlan didn't seem to notice her disapproving glare. The women around him giggled as he tried to sit up from his relaxed posture.

"I left you alone for an hour and you already got yourself smashed," she stated bluntly, "I believe that's a new record even for you."

"Can't we stay here all night?" the Kiffar moaned, "I made a bunch of friends!" At this the woman broke into a fresh round of giggles and several of them began to run their fingers through his dark hair. Quinlan gave a pretty Twi'lek girl a lustful kiss when she brought him another bottle of alcohol, taking a deep swig when they broke apart.

Rhys smothered her disdain with the business at hand, "Vos, put the bottle down, we have to go." Quinlan took a defiant swig and settled back into the receptive arms of his new adoring fans.

"I don't think your girlfriend likes us," a purple-skinned Twi'lek purred, stroking the side of Quinlan's leg and shooting a hateful glare in the other Jedi's direction, "She doesn't want you to have any fun with us because she's jealous."

Rhys scoffed and crossed her arms, "You couldn't pay me to date this laserbrain, _schutta_." The insulted girl returned a sneer before petting Quinlan's chest. "Trust me, I'd be glad to let you have him if he didn't already have a prior engagement."

Quinlan decided to speak through his drunken haze, "You said I could go to the club, so I went to the club."

"I said not to get into trouble," she countered.

"I'm not in trouble!" he drunkenly protested, taking another swig, "At least, not until these ladies want me to be…"

Rhys threw her hands into the air, "You're insufferable! Stay here for all I care, but if you bring even _one_ other person to my ship tonight, I will personally leave you on this planet, am I understood!?"

"Killjoy!"

"Moof-milker!"

"Murderer of…. fun things!" he drunkenly hiccupped.

Rhys rolled her eyes and left the slovenly Jedi to drink and whore himself into a stupor that would probably last the rest of the night. She could only hope that she wouldn't get a call from the city patrol concerning him in the morning.

* * *

Rhys was woken up to the sound of loud clanging emanating from the _StarRover_ 's hull. She had decided to spend the night in her cabin aboard the ship, leaving Quinlan in the club to do whatever pleased him. She hadn't been placed on this mission to babysit him, but apparently he hadn't been content to drink himself into a coma or bed one of the women fawning over him and had to come and annoy her further. She quickly threw on her robe and headed to the cockpit as the banging grew louder, accompanied by giggling and chatter. Rhys could see Quinlan leaning against the ramp from the cockpit, the purple Twi'lek from the club hanging onto his arm, and two other equally inebriated Togruta women leaning on him as well.

"What are you doing, Vos?" Rhys asked, exasperated, over the loudspeaker. Quinlan whirled around wildly, searching for the source of the voice coming from the ship.

"Behold!" he announced loudly as he swayed, "The voice of the Force!"

"Try "the voice of reason," laserbrain," she retorted, "I told you not to bring any women back to my ship!"

"You said any one," he slurred, clutching at the snickering women, "So I brought three!"

Rhys shook her head at his drunken logic, "Go find some other place to bed your women, Vos, because there's no way in Malachor you're going to do it on my ship."

"C'mon, sweetheart, you can have fun with us!" Rhys had finally had enough and activated the electro-shield that projected on the surface of the shield. She generally used the shield to deter droids or mynocks from attaching to her ship, but it served the same purpose to keep Quinlan out. The Kiffar let out a nasty stream of curses as the shocks coursed through his body, preventing him from opening the hatch.

Rhys smiled evilly as his yells grew fainter as the women presumably dragged him away from the ship to comfort him in their own way. _Quinlan would be fine_ , she reasoned as she went back to bed without a second thought of him.

* * *

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	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

 **Hiya! For those of you who love Rebels as much as I do, how about that last episode? Anyway, small docket today - thanks for the many reviews!**

 **ColdOnePaul - Hey, haven't heard from you in a while :) To be fair, the Code says absolutely nothing about indulging in base pleasures, so long as you don't get attached. Honestly, that's one of my biggest grievances with the Jedi Code. Also, if you think that Quinlan Vos is such a shining example of the Jedi Order, you might want to look up Thracia Cho Leem.**

 **Robinbird79 - Keep those theories coming! Some men indeed... he really does need a kick in the rear occasionally, doesn't he?**

 **CardiacCane - Trust me, we'll see plenty of Quinlan in the future - he's one of my favorite characters, and I really want to keep him involved. By the way, you're gonna owe me fifty credits :)**

 **.2017 - Thanks for the review!**

 **As always, the disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Star Wars... not one cent of that very large franchise. Is it multi-million or multi-billion, I can never remember, but a hundred pesedas says it's billions...**

* * *

Tamai glowered across the simulation holo-table at his beaming partner, Anakin Skywalker. The older padawan had offered to take the younger boy to his tactics class so that Obi-Wan could have some time to practice his new Soresu katas, but was now getting thrashed in a battle simulation game. Tam could hear his Master's voice in the back of his mind telling him to curb his emotions when Anakin won for the second time in a row.

The game was fairly simple: the defender, Tam, would attempt to hold a small city against the invasion force, Anakin. The size of the armies were usually random, but could be set to certain specifications. The older padawan was often in the top of the class as he had a knack for battle strategy, but his methodical way of thinking continued to be trumped by Anakin's reckless and unusual tactics.

"I won!" the younger boy exclaimed jubilantly after his forces managed to sneak in an explosive device into Tam's main gates, compromising the wall integrity and allowing the ground troops to overrun the city. Tam gaped in amazement – he hadn't even seen it coming! As the holograph dissipated he glanced at his chrono.

"We'd better go," he announced, turning off the holo-table, "You know how your Master doesn't like it when you're late." Anakin grudgingly agreed – Obi-Wan's newest grievance with his padawan was how often that he seemed to lose track of time. He had already been late to his lesson with Master Vokara Che this morning (which he insisted was an accident), and to his meditation session with Obi-Wan (which was more than likely not an accident).

They found Obi-Wan in the Training Room sparring against Aayla Secura, barely holding up against the swift Twi'lek. Now that Obi-Wan was learning a new style of combat, she insisted that Obi-Wan spar against her at least once a day. Tam didn't envy him – it was only on rare occasions that Aayla held back on her opponent. Anakin watched his Master with rapt admiration as the two Jedi furiously fought. Tam noticed that Obi-Wan was beginning to shift more into the defensive forms of Soresu to conserve energy against his blindingly fast opponent, but that did little to help as the Twi'lek slipped past his defenses and ended the match with a touch on his left shoulder.

"That's got to be a new record, Kenobi!" Aayla exclaimed as they broke apart, smiling widely, "You're getting better at melding your styles."

"That was amazing, Master!" Anakin cried as Obi-Wan stepped out of the sparring ring, wiping the sweat from his face. Tam felt a brief flicker of emotion as he watched the younger padawan congratulate his Master. His own Master had been gone for a month, and while she still called him regularly via hologram, it wasn't the same. Tam was no stranger to his Master's long undercover missions without him, but he still missed the comforting routine they had fallen into when they were both back on Coruscant.

Obi-Wan placed a hand on his padawan's shoulder, "Thank you, Anakin." Anakin grinned widely and began to imitate the sounds of the lightsabers, but Obi-Wan slowed him, "How was tactics class?"

Tam didn't know it was possible for Anakin's grin to get bigger, but it did. "Oh, it was so wizard, Master! Master Plo was there for a minute, then we got to have a turn on the holo-tables, and I beat Tam three times!" Tam winced – Anakin still had a hard time curbing his pride, especially when he believed that his victory was well won.

Obi-Wan seemed to notice that too. "Anakin, humble yourself. Tam was good to let you play with him and nice enough to let you win." Anakin's shoulders slumped as he turned to his friend.

"Oh… sorry, I guess." Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and nodded in the direction of the training sabers on the far wall.

"Go and get one of the sabers, Anakin, we need to work on your blocking technique." All humility set aside, the boy scampered over to the racks. As soon as he was out of earshot, Obi-Wan leaned over to whisper, "I appreciate you letting him win, but it only serves to feed his ego."

"I didn't let him win, Master Kenobi," Tam answered truthfully, "He beat me." Obi-Wan drew back slightly at the news.

"That's… good…" he replied slowly, "I'll have to look into that."

"Are you two going to spar with me or not?" Aayla's accented voice rang out behind them. Seeing as Obi-Wan had already sparred with the skilled Twi'lek, Tam resigned himself to the upcoming battle.

"Yeah…" he answered, pulling his right saber from his belt, "My Master wanted me to work on single-bladed combat while she was gone, so now's a good time as any." He jumped into the ring, ignited one of his emerald green blades, and prepared himself for the oncoming assault of blows.

* * *

Quinlan was visibly angry when he stomped back to the StarRover in the morning without any of his previous night's companions. He glared at Rhys when he entered the ship to find her in the common room, sitting on the sectioned bench with a datapad in her hands.

"That was completely uncalled for," he growled, pointing an accusatory finger at her.

Rhys barely glanced over the top of her datapad, "I disagree… it was very much called for, and I did warn you against bringing your new friends onto my ship." The Kiffar sulkily sank into a chair on the opposite end of the common room, still shooting glares in her direction as he attempted to rein in his wild hair and rumpled clothing. Rhys pointedly ignored him as he took off his outer tunic, sniffed it, and disgustedly discarded it in the ever-growing mess around him. After a month of living out of the StarRover, Quinlan's perpetual state of messiness had spilled over into the common room, the galley, and the hallway outside of his room before his companion had shoved it all into his bedroom. Rhys had gone after him on several occasions to clean up after himself, after which they had decided that Quinlan's cabin could be a dark, gundark-worthy nest of mess, so long as he kept it contained within his cabin. So far it didn't seem to be working.

"You wouldn't have minded if I found you a guy or two to spend the night with," he suggested conspiratorially, "Then we would've had a real party. Or more girls… if you're into that sort of thing, I don't judge."

Rhys scoffed and set down her datapad, "Oh for Force's sake! Why is it that nearly – no, not nearly, _everything_ to do with you is about sex?"

Quinlan gasped dramatically, "I didn't know that you knew that word, sweetheart!

"Really, Quinlan, I've studied biology, it shouldn't be a surprise."

"Aw… now I like you even more! Now you just need to learn how to let go!"

"That is not how I let go! It's all fine for people like you to run around, having relations with any female being to cross your path, but not everyone can do that, you know."

"The Code says nothing about having sex, sweetheart," he retorted, cocking an eyebrow, "All you gotta do is stay in control - no attachment involved. I'll admit it… me and you are pretty similar – we both have problems with the Code, don't like unexplained rules, and we go on long undercover missions."

"I know that, Vos," she rolled her eyes, "But not everyone can have random, casual sex without having to face the consequences! You of all people should know that!" Her face fell slightly before slipping back into her calm mask, "Some of us get attached… it means something different, something deeper… I can't let that happen."

"Why not?"

"Because!"

"Because why?"

Rhys stood up abruptly, "I'm not having this conversation with you anymore!"

"Why not?"

She threw her hands into the air and rounded fiercely on him, "One, because this is a very sensitive topic that I don't want to discuss with you. Two, you are an insensitive jerk, and three, we have work to do!" Without any further words she stormed out of the common room and opened the ramp, cursing him under her breath.

Quinlan sighed and stood up to follow her – at a safe distance of course. Rhys Talik was severely pissed off, and there was no guaranteeing his safety if he poked the gundark further.

* * *

Rhys was still fuming when the foreman led both Jedi to the abandoned landing pad in the middle of the maze of boxes. Sensing the hostility emanating from her barely masked features, the foreman beat a hasty retreat, leaving them alone at the scene. Once the man was gone, Quinlan hesitantly stepped a little closer to his angry companion.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, "I didn't mean to mess with things that I shouldn't have."

She let out a low sigh and stared resolutely ahead, "I shouldn't have gotten angry… I still struggle with that daily. That and attachments."

"What? The great Rhys Talik, Jedi Shadow, feels emotions?" he teased light-heartedly, earning a bit of a smile, "And here I thought you were a shining example of the Jedi Order!"

Rhys gave a small laugh, "That would be Obi-Wan, Quinlan, not me remember?"

"Well, you're not wrong… that guy's so uptight, he might as well have "Future Councilmember" written on his forehead or something." They both laughed as they got on the lift to take them to the top levels of the columns. "So… attachments, huh?"

"One of my many flaws, I can assure you," she replied, "I would do anything for my Master, anything at all. Even if he asked me to break him out of the Healer's Wing at the Temple I would do it. The same goes for my padawan – I would do anything to save him, were he in trouble, and I know that's not the Jedi way, but I love that boy more than anything else in the entire galaxy. The Jedi teach that we should be able to let go of the things that we love, but I am unable to do that for my friends and family, and I can't expect you to understand, but-"

Quinlan interrupted her with a comforting hand on her shoulder, "I understand… more than you know, I understand what it's like to have that level of attachment. I would do the same for Master Tholme and Aayla – Seven Hells, I'm sure that any Master in their right mind would go to great lengths to save their padawan. Attachments are just one thing I've got going for me sweetheart, so you aren't alone against the Code."

"I'm not sure if I should be flattered or concerned to see you on my side, Quinlan," she said dryly as the lift stopped before the blue container, "But I'll accept your offer of a truce. Friends?" Quinlan grinned widely as he shook her offered hand enthusiastically.

All of the Kiffar's enthusiasm disappeared in the blink of an eye when Rhys opened the sliding door of the box, revealing the black ship belonging to Darth Maul. He hesitantly followed his companion as she approached the ship, nearly overwhelmed by the Dark Side emanating from the ship. As he grew closer to the ship, Quinan could feel the air around him grow colder, making the hairs on his neck and arms stand at attention.

"That guy had so much _hate_ …" he murmured under his breath as he trailed a finger over the front hull of the ship, "It corrupts everything it touches."

Rhys silently agreed as she inspected the mechanism to open the hatch, "That's all he had left, I suppose… Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, and that hate can only lead to suffering." She finally found the switch she was looking for and flipped it, causing the hatch to lower with a hiss.

Quinlan looked at her nervously as they faced the red-lit interior, "Uh… ladies first?"

"Age before beauty," she shot back with a mischievous grin. Quinlan placed a hand over his chest in mock-offense.

"I'm not old… and calling yourself a beauty is kind of a stretch!"

"Really, Quinlan," Rhys rolled her eyes, "No pain, no gain." Quinlan cocked his head, clearly confused.

"What pain?" He was suddenly propelled into the darkened ship with a not so subtle Force-push, sending him careening into the metal wall on the other side of the ship. Rhys calmly followed after, the hint of a smile pulling at her lips.

"What in the Seven Hells was that for?!"

"Now we know that the entryway wasn't booby-trapped," she replied saccharinely, pulling him up from where he had fallen, "Congratulations, Quinlan, you make an excellent test pig."

The Kiffar continued to grumble as the two Jedi made their way through the small ship to the cockpit. The entire interior was eerily uniform, composed of identical metal sheets all melded together to form a seamless whole. Even the sole cabin on board was completely empty of any personal belongings or any other identifying features, and all was saturated with the chilling cold that hung in the air.

"Try and see if you can find out anything from his transmission receiver," Rhys said when they finally reached the cockpit, "I'll search through the navi-computer." Quinlan replied with a nod and went over to the transmission receiver, trailing his fingers along the surfaces he passed. After a few minutes of trying to retrieve the memory bank of the navi-computer, Rhys turned it off in disgust – Maul had clearly wiped any information that wasn't etched into the hard drive. "There's nothing here – he wiped the surface memory."

Quinlan turned back to face her with a scowl, "Same here… no records of any transmissions received or sent. Maul was smart – he definitely didn't want to be found."

"He was too smart…" she said under her breath as her eyes raked over the rest of the cockpit in search of any more bits of information. A smile grew on her face as she lit upon the answer. "The hard drive will definitely have the coordinates needed to make the calculations for hyperspace – do you think we could take it out from the main computer?" Quinlan shrugged.

"It's worth a shot… I mean, what else is there?"

Rhys didn't need any more permission than that and quickly laid under the main console that housed the navi-computer. She tore off the black sheets of metal that hid the inner mechanisms of the computer, exposing millions of wires and components. A sudden beeping from above drew her attention.

"Quinlan… what's that noise?" she asked, worry creeping into her voice. She felt him stumble over her outstretched feet as he made his way to the center console.

"Uh… there's a blinky little red light up here…. I'm not really sure what it means…"

Rhys growled and extricated herself from the mess of wires and metal. "You're as much help as a Bantha in a medical wing!" Her voice died as she saw the blinking red light. "Maul must have wired the engine reactors with the console should anyone come snooping."

"And that's… bad?" Quinlan hedged nervously.

"Yes, Vos, that's bad!" she exclaimed hurriedly as she stuck her hands back into the mass of wires, "We have maybe two minutes before the entire ship becomes a very large fireball and I don't want to be here when it does!"

"Well then hurry up and get the chippy thingy!"

"I'm trying, okay! I don't exactly see you sticking your hands into this mess!"

"We are going to die!" Quinlan yelled, punctuating each of his words with a pointed finger. Rhys fumbled around for a few more seconds before she found what she was looking for and yanked it out, snapping several wires in the process.

She grabbed Quinlan's arm to pull herself up as the engines began to rumble ominously beneath them. "Just run, you idiot!" Rhys clutched the chip tightly in her fist as the two Jedi raced through the vibrating ship, alarm sirens going off in every direction. They had barely made it out onto the ramp when Rhys felt a warning ripple through the Force.

Using the last bit of speed she had, Rhys launched herself into the air, still holding tight onto Quinlan's wrist. The ship erupted in fire, the force from the explosion throwing the Jedi further from the blast. Rhys felt herself hit the ground, the energy from the blast washing over her prone body.

When the heat died down, Rhys painstakingly lifted her head up to look at the wreckage of Maul's ship in front of her. The blackened metal smoldered with fire as the mechanics inside burned into an unsalvageable mess. She laid back on the ground to do a mental scan of her body, in too much pain to move. Her left wrist – the one she had landed on – was definitely broken, as were several ribs on that side as well. She raised her uninjured hand to her hairline, shakily pulling it away to see that her fingertips were coated in blood. _That's going to leave another scar,_ she cursed mentally as the pain fully hit her.

Rhys looked to her side to see Quinlan beginning to pick himself up. He seemed to be fairly uninjured other than a large gash on his knees where he had hit the pavement and several burns from the debris on his exposed arms. He shook his head a little bit, clearing the daze caused by hitting the ground.

"You know…" he breathed heavily as he looked back at the remains of the ship, "I really, really, _really_ don't like that guy. He's dead and he's still trying to kill Jedi." Quinlan looked back at her and finally seemed to realize the state his companion was in. "That doesn't look good," he said nervously, bending over to help her up. Rhys shot him a reassuring smile, but began to sway when she was brought upright.

"Are you any good at healing?" she asked, slurring a bit as her vision spun. Quinlan shook his head quickly.

"Nope. Aayla is, though… she was always the one to patch me up."

"We'll… have to… find a hospital…" she said, wincing as she breathed. This wasn't the first time she had broken her ribs, but every time she was reminded how much pain she had forgotten since the last time. For a moment, Rhys was reminded of her promise to her padawan not to get hurt. _Tam's going to kill me_ , she thought, wincing as her head and wrist began to throb.

Quinlan placed her unbroken wrist around his neck and bent to support her weight. "We better find one quick, too – your head doesn't look too good."

Rhys cracked a dizzy grin. "It doesn't feel too good either."

"Seriously? Now is when you finally decide to grow a sense of humor?"

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 **Please review!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

 **Hello humans! What a week, huh? Hooray for a whole week of spring break, the one thing college kids look forward to! Well... other than graduation...anyway, because I'm an incredibly nosy person, I'm going to ask my followers what they're doing for spring break (if you've already had it, good for you and tell me anyway :P) That's right... Tell me an interesting thing that you're doing or have done for spring break! Personally, I'm going to Moab, Utah for the best hiking and jeeping in the world, then taking a trip down to Powell and the surrounding countryside for rock-climbing, slot canyons, and (hopefully!) no sunburns! Here's the docket -**

 **Robinbird79 - Hey, injuries are part of the life of a Jedi! In fact, I'm pretty sure that there isn't a single episode in the Clone Wars that a Jedi wasn't injured. To be fair, they were in the middle of a galactic war, but I've made my point. Thanks for the review!**

 **CardiacCane - I think that their agreement over their dislike of the Code is pretty much what caused Rhys to offer the white flag of peace between her and Quinlan. As you've probably guessed, I'm a little annoyed with the no attachments rule - it's not even in the official Code! I never actually thought that the Council would know about Anakin and Padme, but that does make sense. I mean, Anakin Skywalker isn't exactly known for his subtlety. That's Obi-Wan's cup of tea. Thanks for the review!**

 **.2017 - Thanks for reviewing!**

 **A wild DISCLAIMER appears: Curse you Disney franchise! I don't own Star Wars!**

* * *

Rhys woke to bright lights over her head and the sound of steady beeping. Her eyes rejected the brightness for a moment before they adjusted, taking in the white hospital room around her. Her brow furrowed as she struggled to remember how she had got there – she remembered entering Maul's ship, taking out the navigation chip, the subsequent explosion, and hitting her head really hard. After that it was all a big, pain-filled blur.

"Good morning, sweetheart," a voice purred from her other side, "The view is spectacular, but this isn't exactly how I pictured you waking up next to me."

"Give it a rest, Quinlan, it's never going to happen," she groaned as she turned her head in his direction. Her wrist and ribs were feeling significantly better, but her head still felt like it had been trampled under a herd of reeks. There was only so much a good dunking in the bacta tank and patches could cure, and the after-effects of a concussion wasn't one of them.

The Kiffar's face split into grin, pulling at the tape on his temple that covered several stitches. "You look like bantha poodoo, Rhys." She returned the smile, wincing when her muscles pulled at the bacta patches on her face.

"I've looked worse, believe me."

Quinlan scoffed, "Yeah, your padawan told me all about the times you got yourself thrown off a mag-train, decided to challenge a crime lord, and nearly got yourself eaten by a pack of nexus. He tried to call you, by the way, but you were still out. Also, some person named Obi-Wan Kenobi gave me a very stern lecture worthy of the Council about an hour ago when he called."

Rhys smiled again – that definitely sounded like Obi-Wan. "How long have I been out?" He shifted uncomfortably as he pulled at a gauzy bandage covering much of his left forearm.

"About three days… You were in pretty bad shape when we finally made it to the hospital, and they had to keep you under to set your wrist before you could go in the bacta tank for your burns. I thought that your padawan was going to have a panic attack or something when I told him you were still in the bacta tank yesterday. Honestly, he's almost as bad of a worrier as Aayla is."

Rhys groaned and tried to sit up, "We have that in common, I believe – padawans that are far more diligent than their Masters. I'd better call him back… what about the navigational chip we got from Maul's ship?"

"It's being decoded right now," Quinlan replied, "We've already got the coordinates for Coruscant, but that doesn't mean anything. It would be impossible to trace him from there."

"Sithspit," she swore under her breath, "I hoped that there would have been something more… he must have made jumps to dead space or piggy-backed onto freighters in between destinations. Maul was smart, I'll give him that."

"We haven't completely decoded it," he reminded gently, "In fact, it should be done fairly soon." He placed her commlink on her bedside table with a wink, "I'll be back in a few minutes or so." Rhys shot him a grateful smile as he left the room, then picked up the commlink to call her padawan.

* * *

Tam had taken to pacing across the apartment's living room since Quinlan had last contacted him when his Master had been taken out of the bacta tank on Ramordia. Obi-Wan had given the Kiffar a severe lecture about how he had let her go through with the idea that got her hurt. Quinlan hadn't explained the exact circumstances behind her injury, but he did mention that they had found themselves on the end of an explosive booby-trap. He had felt his Master's pain through their bond, even halfway across the galaxy when the explosion happened. Tam had begun to panic when he felt her going unconscious, bursting into a Council meeting to alert them. They hadn't been happy about the interruption, but Master Yoda wished to know for sure if his former padawan was in any danger. Quinlan had called not long after to confirm that they had been hurt, but were now getting medical attention.

The padawan cursed himself as he continued to pace. As talented as Rhys Talik was, Force-healing was not among her varied skillset – that was why he wanted to learn how to do it in the first place, so that if one of them got injured on a mission, he would be able to keep them alive. Tam shook his head with a small smile – _if_ was not the word… _when_ would be more accurate, especially knowing his Master. He had shown some talent for it in the past, but hadn't any reason to use it before now. Barrit Chopa, a male Togruta Healer, had offered to teach him on account of his Master's intense dislike of medical wings and her frequent injuries. If he had been there with her maybe she wouldn't have gotten so badly hurt, maybe he could have stopped her bleeding, or-

He shook his head – the past was the past, as his Master so often reminded him. Regrets can do nothing but cause pain. She was right, as usual. His thoughts were interrupted by the buzzing of his commlink on the countertop, which he scrambled to pick up. To his great surprise, a holographic image of his Master was projected in front of him.

She looked awful. Tam could tell that she was sitting in a hospital bed, as only the top half of her body was visible. One of her arms was in a sling with a bacta patch over it, her chest was wrapped in a swath of bandages, and her face was peppered with several small bacta patches. She'd had worse, that was for certain, but it still pained Tam to see his Master in such a state.

"I'm sorry that I missed my regular update time, Tam," she apologized with a repentant smile, "Apparently my body decided to take a long overdue nap." Tam couldn't help but grin at his Master's ever-present sense of humor, even when she was so obviously in pain. "What news from the Temple?"

Tam hesitated – the last week had been particularly eventful. It was quite the touchy subject in the Temple at the moment, especially with Obi-Wan. "Well… there was one thing," he hedged, unsure how his Master would take the news, "Master Dooku left the order." Her face grew paler than it already was with surprise.

"Dooku left?" she asked incredulously, "Did he say why?"

The boy nodded his head sadly, "He said that the Council wasn't doing enough to hunt down the remaining Sith Lord that was responsible for Qui-Gon's death, and was pretty public about leaving. He also said that the Order is too involved with the politics of the Republic to truly take action. A lot of people were really upset when he left, Obi-Wan especially… Dooku was a connection to Qui-Gon, and it's still painful for him. He's been in a mood all week, and I think that he vented it on Master Vos when he called us last."

Rhys' lips twisted into a smile, "I heard about that, actually. Where is he now?"

Tam shrugged. "He took Anakin back to the Temple about ten minutes ago, I think. He said that both of them needed to meditate." She gave a slight nod.

"I'll have to call him later," she promised, trying to prop herself up with her uninjured hand. Tam still caught the hiss of pain she let out when her wrist got jostled in the process.

"I'm fine, Tam, I promise," she tried to reassure him after seeing the worried look on his face. The padawan wasn't so easily fooled.

"No you're not, Master," he said flatly, "Even from here I can tell that you're trying to lie to make me feel better."

She groaned as she tried to sit up again, her holographic form flickering as she went in and out of the viewing frame. "I'm sorry… the doctors around here keep asking me how I feel, and saying that I'm fine has become my default answer."

"But you're not fine, Master."

"I know that, but I'm getting there, aren't I?"

Tam shook his head in amazement – even while injured and at the mercy of foreign doctors Rhys Talik would still find a way to stubbornly get her way. He had half a mind to ask Quinlan the next time he called to sedate her until she was healed enough to leave. It would definitely save both the doctors and himself some unneeded grief. "So what happened?" he asked, clearing his throat, "Master Vos was very vague on the details."

His Master looked torn for a moment before taking a deep breath, "We were following the Zabrak's trail and it led us to a storage facility where he hid his ship… I had the bright idea to try and dismantle the navigation chip from the main console to see if we could decode some of his last coordinates, but it was… booby-trapped."

"As in rigged to explode?" Tam folded his arms, "Master, you should know not to go into deadly situations! You could be killed, or worse!"

She waved him off, "If I didn't we'd be no closer to finding out where the Zabrak came from. I did what I had to for the good of the mission, you must understand that."

"I do, Master, really, but that doesn't mean you should make reckless decisions!"

"The kid's right, sweetheart," Quinlan's voice drawled outside of Tam's view. His Master shot him a dirty glare before fixing her attention back on the holo.

"Go away, Quinlan," she snapped, "I already have one child trying to admonish me, and I don't need two!"

Tam knew that she didn't mean it, but it did hurt a little bit to be called a child. He was twelve years old, nearly thirteen, and had been a padawan for more than two years, which was far more than most of the other initiates or padawans his age. His Master's face softened when she looked back at him.

"I'm sorry, Tamai, I didn't think before I spoke," she apologized, "I'm a little cranky at the moment and I've got a bit of a headache."

"Well, you do have a concussion, Master," he pointed out, flashing a smile.

"Speaking of concussions," Quinlan's voice rang out, "The Doc said that if your headache's gone by tomorrow you can leave. Your ribs and wrist should be fixed by then, plus the cut on your head." Tam couldn't help but smile as his Master slumped in relief at the welcome news.

"Oh thank the Force!" she cried out, "I'll be out of this place for good! I'll never have to be stuck in a Ramordian hospital again!"

"He said "if", sweetheart." Her face darkened.

"Oh, it'll be gone…"

"Master…" Tam warned, "Don't lie to the healers – they want you gone as much as you want to be out, trust me."

"You're not wrong…" Quinlan could be heard murmuring, followed by a loud thud and an exclamation of pain, "What was that for?!"

Tam grinned at the triumphant smile on his Master's face – clearly being injured did nothing to hamper her abilities in the Force. "You need to rest, Master," he reminded her gently, not wishing to poke the gundark, "Let me know what the doctors say tomorrow."

"I will, padawan… May the Force be with you."

"And with you, Master."

* * *

Quinlan was nursing a small welt on his knuckle when he came back in the room, glowering at her sullenly. To be fair, she hadn't really intended to hit him on the hand, but he tried to swat the speeding pill bottle out of the way and got struck on the back of his hand. She wasn't trying to aim for him… not really…

"You should be glad to know that we unscrambled the last set of coordinates encoded on the navigation chip," he reported, still eyeing her warily, "Most of them were to dead space, but there were two planetary coordinates in there: Coruscant and an unnamed planet in the Outer Rim. Seeing as Coruscant is a dead end, the Council has granted us permission to travel to the other set of coordinates and check them out."

"That's great," she pulled herself more upright, "How soon can we get there?"

"As soon as the doctor says you can leave," he retorted smugly. Rhys groaned and rolled her eyes – with her luck, she'd be stuck here forever! She continued to shoot poisonous glares in Quinlan's direction until he announced that he was going to find some food and left.

Rhys didn't know that it was possible to be more annoyed at Quinlan when he was actually gone – when he was confined to the miserable white room with her, at least she had an object to focus on. Now, she just had the thought of stomaching tasteless hospital food and the blank white walls around her to keep her company. After staring off into the distance mindlessly for several minutes, she got bored enough to remember the communicator at the side of her bed. After retrieving it, Rhys called Obi-Wan on his datapad, silently praying that he would have the device on his person.

"Kenobi," came his reply and she breathed a sigh of relief as his holographic form came into view.

"So now you're finally beginning to carry your datapad around with you?" she said wryly, cracking a small smile. Obi-Wan crossed his arms stoically and gave a slow shake of his head.

He finally broke the silence with a sharp exhale. "Why is it that you feel the need to put yourself in dangerous situations, Rhys? You could have been killed or worse!"

Rhys looked down at her bandaged arm. "I'm pretty sure that being stuck in a Ramordian hospital qualifies as worse," she cracked, "And besides, we got the chip anyway. No permanent damage." Obi-Wan rolled his eyes.

"If shattering your wrist, cracking your head open, and a dozen other injuries don't qualify as permanent damage, then I don't want to know what you think is permanent."

"Oh, really? I happen to be very injury resilient, I'll have you know!" He stared at her blankly in disbelief, then groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. Rhys grinned – she had seen that expression a lot lately from him, usually when Anakin did something unusually rash.

"Just… try not to kill yourself," he said tiredly, "Please? Both Tam and I panicked when he suddenly couldn't feel your bond anymore and ran to the Council. For both our sakes?" Rhys felt a twinge of guilt at his expression of concern layered with something else that she couldn't identify. However, as soon as she thought that she had seen it, it was gone.

"I promise," she vowed softly, "But I can't always control what happens on a mission, you know that as well as I do." Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer, but as stopped by a loud crash coming from his end. He didn't even bother turning around to find the source of the noise. _Anakin_ , his eyes plainly said.

He seemed to be torn between finding his padawan and talking with her. "I… have to go," he said finally, looking slightly irritated, "I should have known better than to leave Anakin in the Training Room unsupervised."

"He needs you, Obi-Wan," she said gently, "I can call again later." He gave a quick nod, as if trying to convince himself of that very thing.

"Just… be safe, all right?"

"I will."

He gave her one last smile before terminating the connection, his blue holographic form dissolving out of view. Rhys leaned back against her pillows, giving a heavy sigh – back to the empty walls and new thoughts to keep her company.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26

 **Hello, my friends! Sorry for the day's delay in posting the chapter, but I'm sure most of you will understand as you read on. Remember how I said that my spring break was going to be awesome? Well, that idea hit an iceberg and sunk faster than the Lusitania. Allow me to regale you all with my tale of woe, misery, and the despicable Utah weather.**

 **It began much like I expected - my family was headed to Moab for some good hiking and exploration of the countryside in the beautiful spring weather. Not even four hours before we were going to leave, my sweet little second-grade brother (bless his heart) was going to a birthday party. He is now to be given the designation "Patient Zero". Yes, that's right, my entire family got hit with the worst coughing, sneezing, running nose, and general nastiness brought about by a very special strain of flu delivered via kiddie birthday parties. To make matters worse, a lovely canyon wind decided to blow through the valley, bringing with it (yep, you guessed it) an entire wave of pollen. As a result of the flu/allergies/general lethargy I spent the entire week of my spring break huddled on my couch as I tried not to die.**

 **I am pleased to say that many of you had much better spring breaks than I did. Behold... the docket!**

 **CardiacCane - Not to worry, a late review is as good as any! I think that we all know by now that Rhys isn't the most skilled at expressing her feelings, but it has to come out some time. Glad you liked the chapter!**

 **.2017 - Thanks for the review!**

 **cAROLINE pURDY - That's a little weird, I'm not gonna lie... but, hey, I try not to judge. Thanks for the review, I guess.**

 **Robinbird79 - He he... I liked that line too :) Thanks a bunch!**

 **Disclaimer: No, I don't own Star Wars. However, while I was sick I did get to watch a crap-ton of Rebels and Clone Wars episodes. I can only hope that it'll seep into my writing somehow. Genius through osmosis?**

* * *

Rhys tried to hide her smug smile from her companion as the two Jedi walked away from the Ramordian hospital and towards the landing pads. With her long internment finally over, she was finally free to walk around again without being under the constant, annoying eyes of Quinlan and the doctors. Once the doctor had given her the all-clear, she was out of her room faster than a pouncing Kowakian monkey-lizard. She still had a bit of a headache from her concussion, however, and sported a faint scar along her hairline.

"Oh, my sweet baby!" she cried as soon as she caught sight of the _StarRover_ , running over to inspect its hull for any new dents that had appeared during the time she was gone. Thankfully, she found none.

"I think you like that thing more than you like me…" Quinlan grumbled under his breath as he boarded the _Rover_.

"That's because I do!" she shouted at his back, following after him when she was certain that her ship was in good shape.

The interior, however, had taken a noticeable decline since she had seen it last. A stray shoe sat casually on the galley table, crumbs were scattered across the floors, and it looked like Quinlan's messy cabin had spilled out into the hall once again. She gingerly stepped over the mess on her way to the cockpit, wrinkling her nose in disgust. The final straw was a rather soggy sandwich sitting on the command console.

"Vos!" she screeched, flinging the sodden mess into his lap, "I left you alone in my ship for four days, and you thought putting your sandwich on the console was a good idea?! The control deck is not a table!"

The Kiffar raised his hands weakly in defense, "There's no view where the other tables are! I need to see something other than these metal walls!"

"You don't need a view to eat, Quinlan!"

"Yes I do! It's for… meditative purposes!"

"Oh please, you don't meditate!" she spat angrily, jabbing at his shoulder, "You _never_ meditate! If you're going to mess up my cockpit, at least clean up after yourself!"

Quinlan rolled his eyes, "You've been back for five minutes, and you're already badgering me like that stuffy old librarian. If I wanted to hear you nag all day, sweetheart, I would've asked you to be my girlfriend." He sauntered out of the cockpit, his irate companion not far behind.

"Well, the joke's on you, Vos, because I wouldn't say yes even if you asked nicely!" By now they had reached Quinlan's room and were picking their way over the mess, "And while we're here, how in the Force did your room get even messier in the last four days? There isn't even any room to sleep!"

The Kiffar cocked an eyebrow jauntily, "We could make room… And besides, what happens in my own room is my business – that's what we agreed, so why do you care?"

"Because it isn't just in your room!"

"Yes, it's in my room!"

"No," she said saccharinely, "Not only is it in your room, but it's spilled out into the hallway again, which makes it my business."

Quinlan stared at her curiously for a moment, "We could be living in perfect harmony if you just relaxed, you uptight harpy."

"No, _you_ would be living in harmony," she countered, " _I_ would be driven to the sweet embrace of the Dark Side to cope with your hellhole of _harmony_!" She glared at him angrily, her heavy breaths the only sound around them for several minutes. Seeing as there was no way to get him to see reason, Rhys tried another tactic. "Look, I'm tired of being stuck on this planet, and I'm sure you are too, so I'm going to offer you a deal: You clean up the mess _outside_ your room, and I'll forget that this conversation ever happened and plug in the coordinates. Fair enough?"

Quinlan's mouth slowly twisted into a smile. "Deal!" he exclaimed before kicking a pile of trash into his room. Rhys rolled her eyes and went back to the cockpit, trying not to curse at him as she plugged in the coordinates of their next destination.

* * *

The _StarRover_ emerged from hyperspace directly in front of a barren-looking world. The scanners weren't picking up life, which was both good and bad, meaning that there wouldn't be any dangerous beings trying to kill them, but they wouldn't find their missing Sith Lord here. There was, however, a massive Dark Side presence coming from the surface of the planet that warranted investigation.

"There's an electrical signal coming from there," Quinlan said, pulling up a holographic projection of the planet and pointing to the indicated point, "It might give us some clues." Rhys nodded in agreement and brought the Rover into a gentle descent. The atmosphere was thin, but breathable. As they drew closer to the large rock formations that jutted out from the rocky landscape, Rhys spied a metallic glint among the reddish rocks.

"That's not a natural formation… whatever it is. We should land there." Quinlan nodded silently and readied the landing gear. As soon as she set the StarRover on the ground, Rhys turned to the other Jedi. "No matter what happens, don't attack anything unless it attacks you first. I sense that whatever is here could give us clues." The Kiffar nodded his assent before following her down the lowered ramp.

Rhys suppressed her displeasure as the oily-smelling air hit her nose. She then realized why the oxygen content in the air was so low – the gases emanating from the rocks and vents to the planet's core filled the atmosphere with their noxious fumes. As the two Jedi picked their way over the rocky landscape, Rhys was surprised to see various droid and ship parts scattered over the open plain. The trail of droid parts seemed to pile up near the closest large rock, forming some sort of makeshift shelter.

Quinlan picked up a cylindrical severed head that was missing several of its many optic sensors. "Know what kind of droid these are?" he asked, tossing it to her for a closer look.

"Assassin droids," she scowled, her mouth twisting in disgust. She'd had several run-ins with various types of assassin droids in the past – they were definitely not her favorite thing in the galaxy. "The question is who they were hunting… or better yet, who sent them?" She turned the head over in her hands as she searched for the main processer. When she found it, she scowled in frustration - it had been completely melted, almost to the point of being unrecognizable. She dropped the head back on the ground, noticing that all of the other droids had also had their processers melted. With a huff of annoyance, Rhys turned her attention to the mix of metal and rock ahead of her.

The small, hut-like shelter amidst the rock was entirely composed of droid components, burnt ship parts, small rocks, and an ingenious mixture of crushed pebbles and the oily substance secreted by the venting shafts of gas. Rhys felt a small warning through the Force as Quinlan approached the doorway, his scanner beginning to beep louder. She stopped him with a raised hand.

"Not yet," she whispered, "Something's in there."

"Maybe one of those assassin droids survived…" Quinlan mused out loud, craning his neck to peer into the darkened hut.

"I guess we'll see… I don't sense any danger," she trailed off before calling out, "Come out, now! We won't hurt you!" Only silence greeted her words.

Quinlan rolled his eyes. "Whatever's in there isn't going to just come out, you know. Assassin droids aren't exactly known for their higher reasoning."

"I know that," she huffed in annoyance, calling one of her lightsabers to her hand, "I was giving it a chance to respond!"

"Yeah, whatever," he said, igniting his green blade as he readied himself for a fight.

Rhys decided to try one more time. "Come out, or we're coming in!" Several heartbeats passed before a few short beeps came from the depths of the shelter. Rhys recognized the binary language commonly used by astro droids and relaxed her tense posture slightly. "It's just a droid, Quinlan."

"Yeah, an assassin droid," he huffed, still on the defensive, "Who knows what evil things that bucket of bolts is programmed to do?"

Rhys rolled her eyes and clipped her lightsaber back onto her belt. "Well, I'm going to check it out," she said defiantly, turning on her small hand-held light and carefully creeping into the darkened interior. The inside was just as jagged and rough as the outside construction seemed to be. She spied a make-shift bed constructed out the remains of a ship's cabin, pushed haphazardly into the wall amongst a large pile of charred droid bodies. The scavenged remains of a control console was set on the other side of the hut with multiple wires and parts sticking out of it. Finally, she shone her light on the farthest corner of the wreckage, illuminating a familiar-looking domed shape.

"It's just an astromech, Quinlan!" she called out in relief, "Must have been left behind!"

The astromech in question flashed its lights excitedly, rocking back and forth. Rhys dug it out from the pile of dismembered droids surrounding it, careful not to cut herself on the jagged edges that could only have been caused by a lightsaber. The droid began to beep very quickly, waving its small arm attachments in the air.

"Apparently, his ship was stolen and then crashed here," Rhys translated as Quinlan entered, ducking his head to fit through the low opening, "He says that the thief was being chased by the assassin droids." Quinlan snorted in disbelief.

"Does he have any holograms of the thief?" he asked sarcastically, leaning against a large piece of metal, "Because that would really help us."

The droid bleeped something rude before answering. "He thinks that his memory was wiped after the other ship came and left him here, but he might be able to pull up a partial image from when his ship was first stolen," she interpreted. The droid gave out a triumphant whistle when he managed to project a small blue image in front of him. Rhys sucked in a breath – it was definitely the back of a red, tattooed, Zabrak head, clearly taken from the vantage point of the droid behind the cockpit. Not much else was visible, however, making their last possible lead go dead cold.

"So what are we going to do with the droid?" Quinlan asked, glowering at the projected image, "For all we know he could have been Maul's droid… maybe we could get some information from his rusty circuits." The droid beeped in alarm and hurled angry binary curses at the Kiffar.

"It wouldn't help, Quinlan," Rhys said, calming the frightened droid, "And neither are you at the moment – go touch some things outside to see if you can find anything else." The Jedi rolled his eyes in annoyance, but complied. When he was gone, Rhys turned back to the droid. "What's your name, little guy?" The droid gave his designation in a series of beeps.

"N0-B33, huh? Well, you're a long way from home, little guy… I didn't think the old N0's were used for anything other than navi-guides on freighters." The droid beeped indignantly, and Rhys raised her hands in surrender. "All right, all right, I'm sorry," she apologized, holding back a laugh – she was really beginning to like this feisty little droid. "Well, I don't want to leave you here on this stinking rock, so I guess you can come back to Coruscant with us… at least until we find your old owner. I can imagine he's missing you quite a bit." N0-B33 let out a mournful whistle, his lights dimming slightly.

"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that," Rhys responded comfortingly, "If it's any consolation, the Zabrak that killed him is dead… we've been tracking him for a while." That seemed to cheer up the little droid considerably, his lights returning to their normal brightness as he squeaked out another line. "He called you Nobby?" she asked with a smile growing on her face, "Well, that settles it, Nobby – you're coming with us!" Nobby gave an excited squeal and rotated his domed head as he followed his new Master out of the abandoned hut.

Quinlan was less than pleased with their new companion when Rhys told him about Nobby. Granted, he was already in a bad mood with the frustration of losing Maul's trail. He had found absolutely nothing but visions of Maul cutting down countless assassin droids with his double-bladed lightsaber. That paired with the new arrival who seemed content to insult him at every turn put him on a stubborn offensive.

Rhys, on the other hand, was absolutely delighted to have an astromech around. True, Nobby was fairly old, but she planned on adding some modifications and repairs to his battered exterior. The little droid would be next to invaluable on missions – it was always a help to have another pilot, mechanic, and set of eyes around when she and her padawan couldn't be there. She could've always gotten one of the standard Temple droids, but she liked Nobby's spunk – that and he provided her with a brand-new list of creative insults. Yes, he might be a little grumpy because of his rusted circuits, but she would bring him into her weird, varied form of family that she kept close to her heart.

* * *

Tam had just barely returned to the apartment when his Master called him on his commlink. He fumbled around with his new robes for a moment – Master Vena Kaa had insisted that he get new robes, on account of his rapidly growing frame – and finally pulled out his comm unit, projecting a miniaturized form of his Master. Yesterday she'd called to let him know that the trail had gone cold, but now she seemed to be considerably happier than she'd been when he'd last spoken to her.

"We just entered hyperspace," she reported, "It won't be long until we reach Coruscant, so I'm giving you a fair bit of warning to fix anything Anakin has broken." Her eyes twinkled with mirth as the padawan gulped. Anakin, as careful as he tried to be, couldn't completely keep from breaking something. As far as he knew – and already fixed – Anakin had only broken the showerhead, a lamp-bulb, and set off the security system twice.

"What's there to fix?" he laughed nervously. His Master gave a wry smile and looked over her shoulder.

She turned back to him, clearly trying to hide a smile. "I actually have something for you, Tam… a little present, if you will." To the padawan's great surprise, a small, rusty astromech rolled into view. "Isn't he wonderful?" she cooed, patting the domed head affectionately and straightening the droid's bent antennae, "His name is Nobby, and he wants to stay with us!"

Both boy and droid stared at each other through the hologram as if daring the other to make a move. Tam resisted a groan – once again, his Master was adopting yet another thing that she expected him to care for. Come to think of it, so did Qui-Gon when Obi-Wan was much younger. Both Jedi were very in tune with the Living Force, and formed attachments easily.

"Sounds… great, Master," he managed to stutter. His Master, lost in her excitement, didn't pick up the strained tones in her padawan's voice, "Can't wait for you to get back."

A loud crash sounded on her end and she swiftly whirled around to face the source of the noise. "Quinlan!" she shouted before turning back to her padawan. "Excuse me, I have to… deal with something," she scowled, "Come on, Nobby." The droid beeped out a rather insulting phrase concerning Quinlan's mother and a Gungan at which Rhys smiled. "We'll be home soon."

With that, the connection dissolved, leaving Tam with a feeling of exhaustion. What had his Master gotten herself into this time?

* * *

 **Please review!**


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

 **Hello, everyone! I know it's been a while... rest assured that I will be updating a lot more frequently! I'm also going to be completely honest. Over the past month or so, I've ran out of connecting ideas. I know where I want to go, but I'm just not sure how to get there... is that crazy? I'm sure that a bunch of you can relate. In any case, small docket, but here it is:**

 **CardiacCane - Thank you so much for giving me the needed kick in the rear to get back on track :) Your reviews are wonderful to read!**

 **Robinbird79 - Every Jedi has their droid, right? Anakin's got R2, Obi-Wan goes through several R4's I believe, even Kit Fisto has an R9! Thanks for the reviews!**

 **Last but not least, please, please, please, review! If you have any story ideas or suggestions I would be glad to hear them! Disclaimer: No, I don't own Star Wars. Not one measly cent.**

* * *

Rhys was finishing up scraping the rust off of Nobby's outer surfaces when a set of beeps emanating from the cockpit caught her attention. She quickly scrambled from her cabin to the controls, seeing that they were about to emerge into the space around Coruscant. Nobby rolled in a moment later, whistling inquisitively.

"You've never been to Coruscant?" her eyebrows raised in disbelief, "Well, in my opinion, there's not much to look at other than the Senate Building, 500 Republica, and the Jedi Temple, of course."

She looked away from the controls for a moment to admire her handiwork. Now free of the rust, Nobby's white, dark blue, and yellow markings could be seen amongst the silver. The little droid seemed to be considerably less grumpy now that his joints could move freely, but that didn't stop him from letting Quinlan know exactly what the droid thought of him. He was remarkably intelligent – for a droid of his kind – and had already began to acquaint himself with the inner workings of the _StarRover_.

As they descended into the atmosphere and neared the Temple, Rhys offered the controls to the droid. "Do you think you can get us into the hangar?" she asked, standing up. Nobby beeped out an affirmative and connected himself to the main controls. Her ship taken care of, Rhys left the cockpit to find Quinlan. After nearly setting fire to the galley in an attempt to make a toasted sandwich, she'd banished him from the galley until they returned to Coruscant. The Kiffar had stomped off sulkily to the common room to eat his burnt creation and take a nap. Rhys found him where she'd left him – sprawled out haphazardly across the bench in the common room, dead asleep with a line of drool making its way down his chin. Rolling her eyes, she shook him roughly by the shoulder.

"Wake up, Quinlan. I'm not carrying you back to the Temple."

"Whazzat… go 'way…" he groaned sleepily, waving her off, "S'not morning…"

"No, it's not morning – it's mid-afternoon on Coruscant. Now get up and get packed!"

"Gimme a minute…"

Rhys gave an irritated huff and placed her hands on her hips. She did _not_ have time for Quinlan's laziness. She tried once more to rouse him, but he just shook her off and rolled over, facing away from her.

"This is ridiculous," she grumbled as she headed into the galley, retrieving the partially full glass of water Quinlan left on the table before his banishment from the cooking supplies. Without any warning, she dumped the entire contents of the glass over the Kiffar's head. Quinlan jumped up, bellowing and waving his arms around madly. Rhys deftly stepped to the side to avoid his flailing body. "Open your eyes, laserbrain." He braced himself against the central table and turned to face her, not in the least happy that his nap had been interrupted by an unexpected shower.

Quinlan shook his head to rid it of the water and glared at the wry smile that was creeping its way up her face. "That's not funny," he hissed, "You have a sick sense of humor, Talik." Rhys shrugged.

"It worked, didn't it?" The Kiffar snorted loudly and stomped off to collect his bags from his room. Rhys shot a smug grin at his retreating back then went to retrieve her own bags.

* * *

When the _StarRover_ 's ramp lowered to reveal the spacious hangar inside the Temple, Rhys wasn't surprised to see Tam and Aayla dutifully waiting to greet their Masters. She was, however, surprised to see Master Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Anakin waiting as well. As soon as her feet hit the ground she was set upon by her apprentice, the boy worriedly checking her over for any new injuries.

"I'm fine, Tam, honestly," she assured him as she caught him up in a hug. As they broke apart, Rhys held him at arm's length by the shoulders and looked him up and down. "You got bigger robes," she observed, taking in his new cream tunics and dark brown pants.

The padawan blushed and ducked his head, "Master Kaa said I'm growing, apparently. I haven't noticed a difference." She ruffled his messy hair – for some reason, her padawan had an aversion to the short haircut preferred by most padawans, but that suited her just fine. Tam looked over his Master's shoulder to see Quinlan struggling to get down the ramp of the _StarRover_ as he was being not-so-gently nudged by a dark blue and yellow astromech.

"Get away from me, you useless bucket of bolts!" he screeched as Nobby hit the back of his legs, "You're going to knock me over!" Nobby gave a rude retort and with a final push casually rolled his way across the landing pad to Rhys.

"I think that was the idea," Rhys called back, patting Nobby's head affectionately. Quinlan rolled his eyes and stomped off to where Aayla was waiting for him. The blue Twi'lek seemed to calm him quickly, and soon he launched into the epic story of how they had blown up Maul's ship. Quinlan's version of their tale involved nonexistent smugglers, pirates, and even had them dueling against evil assassin droids. Anakin approached the older Jedi, his entire attention riveted on the highly embellished story that was being told. Obi-Wan just shook his head at his padawan's eagerness for adventure and went to greet his friend.

As soon as he approached her, Rhys cocked an eyebrow curiously at his face. Without any warning, she placed both hands on the side of his face, examining the new layer of reddish-brown hair that coated his chin. "You grew a beard," she accused him flatly, causing his face to blush a violent red.

"Er… yes, Bant suggested it, actually," he stumbled as her hands left his face, "Do you like it, then?" Rhys stared at him curiously for several moments, as if contemplating.

"Well… it does make you look older," she said finally with a large grin, "Less like an impulsive padawan and more like a stern Master devoted to reprimanding rule breakers. I'd better watch how I step from now on!" Obi-Wan shrugged his shoulders noncommittally.

"Well, with you content to break all of the rules, someone has to be around to remind you that sometimes they exist for a good reason," Obi-Wan teased. To his amusement, Tam huffed a sigh and gave a small nod of agreement. Unfortunately, Rhys caught his actions from the corner of her eye and nudged him reprovingly. Her attention was drawn away by the approach of Master Yoda slowly making his way over to them.

"Concerned for your injuries, I was," he said in his strange way of speech when he reached the group of young Jedi, "Reckless, that was, Padawan." Rhys dipped her head respectfully, a picture of repentance. Tam knew better, however, and saw clear through the humbled veneer to the laughing inside.

"I apologize for causing you any anxiety, Master," she replied solemnly, her eyes twinkling with hidden mirth. Obi-Wan got the feeling that this was a conversation that the former Master and padawan had heard often.

Yoda fixed her with a stern stare before quickly nodding, "Report to the Council, you must," he said quickly, and turned to leave almost as abruptly as he had come. Tam looked perplexed at their odd exchange, then shook his head. There were times when he thought that he understood his Master perfectly, but then there were times like this that showed him all that he had to learn about her strange ways.

* * *

Obi-Wan held back a rare smile as he watched his friend follow her former master out of the hangar, presumably to give her report to the waiting Council with Quinlan not far behind. He was surprised at how well Rhys and Quinlan were getting along – usually their conversations were a bloodbath of insults that left both sides more surly and annoyed than before. To his surprise, Obi-Wan could see that they were exchanging good-natured ribbing instead of their usual glares.

His stomach gave an uncharacteristic flip when she laughed at one of Quinlan's unheard comments, the sound carrying across the near-empty hangar. With a bit of a start, Obi-Wan realized that he'd missed hearing her laugh when he disdainfully turned down the cup of caf that she kept trying to get him to drink, or the bright gleam in her eyes right before she swept her leg underneath her in a spar, or the low humming that she sometimes did when deeply concentrating and meditating without even being aware that she did it…

Almost immediately, Obi-Wan was drawn back to the celebratory ball on Naboo, and the impromptu dance they had shared. Although it wasn't the first time that he'd seen Rhys in a dress, it was probably the first time that she had truly felt happy with being dressed up to honor her sister's victory. Although she wasn't the elegant kind of beautiful that Padmé was, she was still pretty in a graceful, powerful kind of way.

Obi-Wan let his mind wander as he and Anakin followed the group at a distance. He remembered the first time that he had really thought of her as beautiful – it had been on their mission to Ryloth together with Garen when they were helping a village evacuate their homes on account of a series of earthquakes that was causing the ground to collapse. The three young Jedi had been tasked with moving about two hundred Twi'leks out of the collapsing village when Rhys had found a small Twi'lek girl that had been lost in the commotion. He vividly remembered her face as she gently picked up the crying toddler and wiped away his tears. Like everyone else she was covered in the dust roused by the sinking ground, but to Obi-Wan she had never been so beautiful, a shining beacon of strength and stability amongst the chaos. She was so calm, so real… so unlike Satine in that moment, who was always so unattainable…

All at once he dispelled all thoughts of her from his mind as he remembered who they were and their sworn duty to the Jedi. Like all the women he had loved before, Rhys Talik could never truly show the affection for him that he felt for her – their duties to the Order and the Republic prevented it. Obi-Wan sadly released his turbulent emotions into the Force as he watched her disappear around the corner.

* * *

Darth Sidious was annoyed… annoyed with the Senate, annoyed with his new apprentice (who never seemed to be where he wanted him to be), annoyed with the meddling Jedi, and annoyed with the fact that once again Talik was getting ever closer to the discovery of the two Sith Lords. He had read her initial report to the Council after her… incident… aboard Maul's ship, and knew without a doubt that she wasn't telling all that she'd found there.

He could feel that she was no longer fully ingrained in the Light – it would still take quite an event to bring her to the Dark Side of the Force, but Sidious was not a master of subtlety for nothing. She chafed violently against the restricting chains that the Order placed on her will and emotions… he could feel her need for peace conflicting with her knowledge that true peace was a lie. The Sith Code offered freedom, control, power – everything she craved at the basest of her being. It was beautiful, really, how the Light continued to resist against the Dark, but ultimately the temptation for power would win out. Tyranus had already discovered that particular promise of the Dark Side and claimed it for himself.

The Plan was in full effect now and all was prepared for the rise of the new Sith Empire at the hands of Sidious. Yes, it would be at least a decade before his plans truly started bearing the fruits that they were planted for, but Sidious was also a master of patience. He, as the Chancellor, already possessed the power to control the actions of the Jedi and the Senate without them even knowing. The next step of the Plan would be to plant the seeds that would ultimately serve as the doom of the Jedi.

The first of those seeds would be planted in the heart of Rhys Talik, feeding her mistrust of the Council and choking her sense of duty to the old fools. He would have to be careful, though – she was skilled in perceiving the influence of the Dark Side when others couldn't, especially his own touch. Anakin Skywalker, however, was naïve enough to believe what he was told blindly, plus Sidious had already established himself as a caring, grandfatherly figure towards the boy. The boy was powerful, that was certain, but his power had to be focused towards a single target to be of any use to the Sith Imperative.

Sidious' musing were interrupted by the soft beep of his holotransmitter. The projected form that came into focus was none other than his newest apprentice, Darth Tyranus, who was most likely reporting on the newest seeds planted to ensure the downfall of the Jedi.

"My Master," Tyranus' low voice oiled, smooth as Ramordian silks, "Sifo-Dyas has been disposed of, and the Kaminoans have accepted our payments. They have begun the creation of the first templates now."

"Very good," Sidious hissed, "And the Separatist movement?"

"I have begun to sway the people and allies of Serrenno, my Lord."

Sidious sat back in his high-backed chair, feeling more pleased than he had all day. "You have done well, my apprentice." Tyranus gave a low bow, then cut the connection. Sidious turned to face his expansive view of the Coruscanti skyline. It was only a matter of time before the galaxy would belong to him…

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	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

 **Hello, my friends... yes, I'm a slacker, but I'm working on remedying that. Lately, the Star Wars fanfiction muse has NOT been my friend, but I believe that we will hug and make up in the future. Until then, please enjoy this lovely - although shorter than usual - chapter. Also, I am currently working on a Percy Jackson/Olympian/Rick Riordan expanded universe fic called "Daughter of the Mist" that is an OC x Luke Castellan. Now, I know what you're thinking, and no it will not be your orthodox PJO fic, and actually starts around the time that Luke goes on his first and only quest to the Garden of the Hesperides. If you're interested, let me know and I'll post whatever I have sometime in the next week or so. That being said, here's the docket:**

 **Robinbird79 - You know, I hope Palpatine is foiled too, but you gotta remember that this is the guy who ultimately becomes Emperor over most of the galaxy. That being said, he also dies a horrible death at the hands of Anakin Skywalker, so who knows. Thanks for the review!**

 **CardiacCane - Boy, I love long reviews! You're probably right about Quinlan, but I plan for him to make a few more appearances later on. Obi-Wan does seem to have that habit, doesn't he... I really hope that doesn't happen, but I haven't planned much past the end of the Clone Wars. Also, thank you so much for your advice on running with ideas!**

 **Disclaimer: Own Star Wars, I do not... sad, that makes me feel. Review, you must, to cure this.**

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All twelve Masters on the Council sat silent in contemplative thought as Rhys Talik and Quinlan Vos finished giving their reports. Mace Windu sat forward, concern creasing his brow as he turned to a solemn-looking Master Yoda.

"And you say that there is no further trace of Maul?" Windu asked, turning his dark eyes back on the two Jedi standing before them.

"None," Rhys affirmed, "His ship held no further records and the empty planet was a dead end… literally. There was nothing left but droid parts and the memories of Maul destroying them."

Yoda's ears twitched thoughtfully, "No closer to finding the source of this assassin, we are. Alerted to our presence, his conspirators must be." Rhys tamped down the flare of irritation in her at the mention of _assassin_. Maul was definitely not just an _assassin_ – he was highly trained in the ways of the Sith, to use his anger and fear as a weapon. He even had a red lightsaber, for Force's sake the main symbol of the power of the Sith. The Council still refused to believe that the Sith had truly emerged from their dark hiding place, that they had changed from the brash, uncontrollable warriors of old to subtle, cunning masterminds.

"With respect, Masters," she started, stepping forward slightly, "I would like your permission to continue this course of investigation. I believe that there are other actions we could take to find Maul's origin." Immediately the uneasiness in the Council room peaked at an all-time high.

Windu's voice cut through the tension as easily as his lightsaber would a binding cuff. "And what course of action would that be, Rhys?" She firmly held his gaze as she answered.

"I would like the Council's permission to consult one of the Seers," the Council stared at her in pensive silence, "My own glimpses of the future are nothing compared to what a true Seer can divine, and it would be helpful if Quinlan and I are to continue our search."

Finally, Ki-Adi Mundi spoke up, "And which of our limited Seers are you proposing could assist you?" Rhys cracked a small smile and exchanged a sideways glance with Quinlan.

"Tellura Synar." The Council drew back slightly at the certainty in her voice. They seemed to mentally debate her request for a while, before Mace Windu - acting as the mouthpiece of the twelve - nodded his head stiffly in assent. Rhys was jubilant at her victory, but suppressed her joy long enough to give the Council a short bow and make a hasty retreat, Quinlan not far behind. She breathed a sigh of relief as she exited the Council chambers, Tam and Aayla standing up from their chairs to greet their Masters.

"How did it go?" Tam asked hesitantly. His Master's meetings with the Council didn't usually go the way she liked them to, and often left her irritated. He was surprised to see her break into a smile.

"We get to keep looking," she said triumphantly, "This time with more help."

Quinlan groaned – spending more than a month on Ramordia looking through storage yards wasn't exactly his ideal mission. "I don't see how that's a good thing," he complained, "I don't want to go back to Ramordia!"

Rhys gave him a small push on the shoulder as they all entered the elevator, "We're not going back to Ramordia, weren't you listening?" He returned a blank stare that obviously indicated that he most definitely was not listening. To be fair, Rhys couldn't remember the last time that Quinlan actually paid attention to a Council briefing. She huffed a sigh before continuing, "We can't get anything from a dead end, so it's time to try something different. I'm going to be taking Maul's lightsaber to a Seer to see if she can find out anything that we can't. Tellura doesn't have the same limitations when it comes to visions as we do – through the Force, she can find anything through the past, present, or future."

The wheels seemed to be turning in Quinlan's head as he thought. "So… if this Tellura lady can find anything, why wasn't she given this assignment in the first place?"

Rhys placed a hand on her temple. "Because, Quinlan," she nearly growled, "Jedi Seers are rare, even among the gift of the Force. Most Seers are Jedi Consulars, and don't leave the Temple often. They're too valuable to the Order."

"Hey, I'm valuable!"

"I shouldn't have used _valuable_ ," she corrected herself, " _Needed_ , perhaps… Nearly all of the Seers here at the Temple are tasked with scanning the future and past for potential threats, especially now, when the Force is imbalanced... even here in the Temple."

"Imbalanced?" Tam piped up from beside his Master, "How can the Force be out of balance in the _Jedi_ Temple? I thought that the Jedi created balance when the Sith Empire fell. Without the Sith there's peace."

"Yes and no, Tam," she answered, " _Peace_ doesn't necessarily mean _balance_."

"Oh…" he trailed off, "Really?"

Rhys laughed as the elevator doors opened, directing them out into the hall. Thankfully it was empty – she didn't exactly feel like debating her beliefs with any Jedi to pass them and overhear, as it had caused quite the crowd when it last happened. She bid Aayla and Quinlan a hasty goodbye, promising to talk to them later, then herded her padawan up to the long meditation walkway that stretched the entire length of the Temple.

Once they were out of earshot of any who might hear, Rhys spoke, "I suppose that this discussion could take the place of our usual afternoon lesson. Let's start off with an easy question: What is the first word that comes to your mind when you hear the word peace?"

"Calm," Tam blurted immediately, then blushed at his hastiness, "I think of calm."

"A meaning of peace is calm, true, but is that balance?" Tam's brow wrinkled in concentration as he thought over his Master's question. This was really the first time she had really given him an in-depth lesson on her views of the Code. Somehow he got the sense that it wasn't going to be a simple one. He knew that his Master had spent many years debating the Code, forming her own opinions about it, and meeting harsh opposition for her views. Several other Jedi - including several on the Council - had even gone so far as to label her as a Grey Jedi.

"Well…" he hedged, "When I meditate, I'm calm and at peace, so that must be balanced, right? I don't have any anger or fear to distract me." Apparently, that had not been the answer she had wanted, because a small frown appeared on Rhys' lips.

"Let me try something different," she said, a hint of a sigh in her voice, "When we arrived on Naboo, it was a beautiful, sunny day. It was very peaceful." Tam nodded in assent, not quite sure as to what she was alluding to, "However, it was also very bright outside. As I recall, it cast some very dark shadows, especially the closer that you got to the ground. Let me ask you this: Can darkness be caused by the light?"

Tam thought for a moment, then answered, "I think so… like the shadows?"

"Very good, Tam," she replied, explaining further, "Darkness and light cannot live without the other. Too much of one, and it chokes out all life. Too little, and life cannot exist. Think of Tatooine – its surface is scorched and lifeless because it receives double the sunlight than most planets. There must be a balance between dark and light for life to go on. Can you see how just having peace is not having balance?"

He nodded slowly, understanding dawning in his eyes, "I think so… but aren't the Sith evil? Don't they want to destroy the Republic?"

Rhys sucked in a breath – she hadn't thought that they would get this far today. Actually, she didn't even think that Tam would be able to accept her belief of balance, like the others she had tried to explain to. "That depends greatly on your point of view," she said softly, slowing her walk, "Do not all ecosystems need predators? Will not a planet full of prey grow out of control, so large and twisted that they no longer know what they came from, what they started as? A planet populated in extremes with become corrupt and die without the proper balance to counteract the extremes into moderation. The quest for balance is what drove our predecessors and those of the Sith to leave their original planet." She turned her gaze to her padawan, his bright green eyes eager for knowledge.

"Our Jedi Order once had its roots in the ancient Je'daii Order in the Tython system," she began, and his eyes lit up with recognition at the familiar history that all younglings were taught, "To keep their world from the destructive power of natural disasters, the Je'daii were required to be balanced between the Dark and the Light. Those that were imbalanced were temporarily exiled to the two moons of Tython: Ashla, the moon always turned to the light, and Bogan, the moon shrouded in darkness. There they would live until they found balance in their lives and in the Force." Tam's face clouded in confusion – clearly he had never heard that part of the story before. Rhys wasn't surprised… it wasn't exactly the thing that they taught the younglings in the crèche. Usually the crèche masters taught that only those that used the Dark Side of the Force were exiled, ignoring or not knowing themselves that those that over-used the Light were also banished.

"Both the Light and Dark sides of the Force were needed to keep the planet stable and balanced in the Force," she continued, "But over the years, there began to be an increase in the exiled, and there was a brutal civil war that nearly destroyed both sides. Those that were devoted to Bogan, or the Dark side, fled the system when they were ultimately defeated. The remaining members of the Je'daii Order now devoted to the Light side soon found their way to the newly-formed Republic, becoming the keepers of the peace that we know today as the Jedi Order." She stopped and turned to him, placing a hand on his shoulder, "So now you know… Peace is not balance. There hasn't been peace since the Sith Empire was destroyed – there is still slavery, still corruption, and still unbalance in the Force. If you look hard enough, you can find it, even here in the Temple."

Tam closed his eyes tight in concentration, and Rhys felt him reach out into the Force, straining to perceive some heavy imbalance in the Force around him. She smiled at his efforts, but knew that he wouldn't be able to feel it right away.

"I can't feel anything!" he exclaimed, catching the attention of a Master and padawan pair passing them by. Rhys fixed them with a look and they went on, whispering conspicuously.

"You may be able, in time," she comforted him, "Remember, my senses are much more attuned than yours are, padawan." They walked on in silence for a few minutes until Tam spoke abruptly.

"Does the Council know about the imbalance?"

Rhys huffed a sigh – she didn't remember her questions to Master Yoda being this hard. She felt more sympathy to the griefs of the venerable old Master that had put up with her as his padawan for more than a decade. "Sometimes I think that they can't sense the Dark, but other times even I find it impossible to ignore. To be honest, I have a very hard time sensing what the Council knows. They are very wise, but I believe that their status and respect gives them arrogance, and that arrogance is what blinds them to the Dark Side. I don't think that they believe that the Sith could return without them knowing it, but they give off so much light that it is difficult to see where the shadows are hidden."

Master and padawan walked next to each other in silence, mulling over the words that had been spoken. Finally, Tam spoke up again, turning to his Master. "Why can you sense the imbalance when they can't?"

Rhys cast her eyes to the ground, not sure if she should answer the question, or if she even truly knew the answer. When she finally spoke, it was in a hushed voice. "You know that I sometimes struggle with the Code, Tam. I fall prey to anger, jealousy, pride, and attachments. Perhaps the easiest answer would be that I have felt the influence of the Dark Side more than most, and it still calls me. I can't explain any more than that."

Tam, sensing the pain in his Master's voice and the nearing end of the lesson, wisely kept quiet. There were still questions burning in his heart, but he knew that this was no longer the time to try and pry open his Master's abundance of secrets. He walked alongside her in silence as they left the Temple and went to the apartment together for the first time in a month. He wasn't surprised when she quickly excused herself to go to bed, feigning tiredness after her long mission.

Now alone, Tam sat himself on his bedroom floor and began to meditate, pondering over the impromptu "lesson" he had received earlier. Closing his eyes, he focused his inner sight in the direction of the Temple and the nexus of the Force located there. For a moment, all he could feel was the intense concentration of the Light Side of the Force, flowing through all of the Jedi in its halls. After nearly an hour of meditation and almost falling asleep once or twice, Tam began to feel something… different. Something was wrong there, something far beneath the Temple seemed to be cold and dark. He tried to concentrate on the chilling sensation, but was unable to keep hold on it as it slipped away into nothingness.

He closed his connection to the Force and climbed into bed, still trying to wrap his head around the cold sensation he had felt buried in the river of the Force.

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